My Prince of Shadows
by LIFE the RANGER
Summary: Percy is gay, and no one knows. Nor does anyone know he's crushing on Nico, and crushing hard. Will this unlikely pair be a couple in the end, or will the Prince of Shadows always remain out of reach? Rated T for boy/boy and mild language. Percico!
1. Nico's Got a Date?

My friend and I have a community where we submit the best yaoi stories, and the one that "wins"based on some guidelines will be featured on our Facebook page. Anyone is welcome to join or recommend stories.

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Percy's POV

…

I'm pretty sure I loved him.

Okay, so I know that sounds strange, especially when you consider I'm sixteen and he's… I think he's thirteen. And totally in his own little world. I'm dead serious (no pun intended). He liked being alone, and I'm one of the few who managed to get myself a small chunk of his world for myself. I bet Hades himself would be easy to talk to.

I'm talking about the son of the god of death himself, Nico di Angelo.

We'd gone on many dangerous quests together. He's risked his life to help me time and time again (which is something I can't ever repay him for), and he's gone from hating me to almost becoming something close to a little brother. But not quite. And I certainly didn't want him to be. In fact, I wanted him to be something more than my friend. But I don't think he's all that interested in my like that…

"Percy, will you quite scowling at your cheerios," Annabeth said, snapping me back to breakfast. Why I chose cereal I'm not sure because I hate the stuff. Oh right. Cereal, and cheerios in particular, are Nico's favorite. Without thinking about it, I must have grabbed a bowl of the stuff. I shoved it away in disgust and nibbled on the edges of my toast. In tribute to Tyson, it was covered in peanut butter. Annabeth studied me closely. "Cheerios are Nico's favorite…" she mumbled, almost to herself, shooting glances at the Prince of Shadows. "Hmmm…" She turned back to study me. I really hoped I wasn't blushing, because that would ruin the whole thing I was about to do.

"I must have just grabbed it by mistake," I said, shrugging. "No big deal." Nobody at camp, not even Annabeth, knew I was gay, and crushing on Nico. Besides, he was still practically a child, and he had yet to figure out any feelings of any kind, least of all towards me. I abandoned my breakfast and wandered over to the official Hades table.

"Percy!" Nico exclaimed, smiling around a mouthful of scrambled eggs. He gulped twice and his skinny arms snaked around my waist. "Hi Percy!" He was happier than I've seen him in a long time, and youthful enthusiasm radiated from him for the first time since his sister died. I wonder what had him so happy.

"Hi Nico," I replied, hugging him back. Nico was by no means a touchy feely person, but he hugged me whenever he saw me, especially when he was in a happier mood. He released me and sat back, smiling as he shoveled more eggs into his mouth. I raised one eyebrow at that. I've never seen Nico eat eggs, not once. I shrugged off the thought. Whatever he ate was fine with me as long as he was eating. No need for him to waste away.

"What are you doing over here?" he asked, tilting his head to the side and studying me, reminding me of a darker, black-haired Annabeth. He might be a kid, but he was a smart kid. I blushed furiously and waved my hands around, trying to distract him a little.

"Just thought I'd come over and say hi to my little buddy," I replied, ruffling his hair. He beamed at me, and my heart melted a little. Nico hardly smiled, but when he did, it was one of youthful innocence, and it made the sun disappear from the sky. "Well, I'd better get back to my own table. I just thought you looked a little lonely." I rose and made a move away from the table, when suddenly Nico launched himself off the table bench and wrapped his legs around my waist, clinging to me. I staggered under his weight, then steadied myself and slipped my arms around him so he wouldn't fall down. "Now what was that for?" I scolded him gently.

"Cause I wanted to!" he told me, smiling huge. "And cause I know you won't get mad at me if I do it." He giggled as I set him on his on his own feet. He waved as I walked away, and I thought he was behaving strangely, even for Nico. I had to get to the bottom of this.

"That was incredibly adorable," Annabeth commented as I sat back down. I blushed once again and stared at my breakfast plate, my stomach heaving too much for the consumption of food to be safe. I shoved my plate away and mumbled something to my hands. "What was that seaweed brain?" she asked innocently, batting her eyelashes. Groaning, I turned to face her.

"I think it was too," I whispered. "He's a cute kid when he wants to be." I pondered that for a moment. Was there someone he was trying to be cute for? Nico never acted like that. I called him Prince of Shadows for a reason. He was as dark and elusive as one, and this bubbly personality seemed to spring up faster than the skeletal warriors he summoned. "What's gotten into him?" I wondered aloud.

"Isn't it obvious," Annabeth replied, meaning it wasn't. "Nico's in love. You act the same way. Like when you were crushing on Luke." I made a face. That was definitely a long time ago and a story for another time. "Our little Nico has a crush on someone," she continued, and if she noticed the face I made at Luke's name, she didn't let on. "I wonder who it is."

"Me too," I gritted out. The thought of my precious Prince of Shadows crushing on someone at camp was enough to make my blood boil, but I fought down my feelings and reluctantly agreed to what Annabeth was saying.

"It's kind of cute," she said to me, shooting me looks. "He's pretty young yet for a crush. I bet it'll be just a phase he's going through." Just as she said it, a small body plowed into me. I hefted Nico up and he grinned.

"Hi Annie!" he said, waving. "Percy, wanna come meet my friend with me?" Annabeth shot me more looks when he turned back to face me. I shot her a quick look back, and something close to confusion appeared on Nico's face as he watched us. "Are you guys talking with your eyes?" he asked us.

"Yes," I replied. "It's an older teen thing. Sure, I'll go meet your friend with you." He wiggled out of my grasp and skipped ahead of me into the woods, looking back over his shoulder occasionally.

"You'll love Oliver," he called as I followed him. "He's a child of Athena, so he's really smart. He's your age Percy!" He ran back and jumped onto my back. I carried him piggyback until we came to a clearing. "Here!" he cried out, slipping off my back. A timid looking boy stepped out from behind a tree, and his face lit up when he saw Nico. I had to bite my tongue to keep from screaming at him.

"Hi Nico," he said as Nico plowed into him (I thought I was the only one he did that to), and he picked him up. "Did you bring a buddy?" The Prince of Shadows nodded enthusiastically and beckoned me over.

"This is Percy, Price of the Sea," he said solemnly, sounding more like the old Nico. "He calls me the Prince of Shadows so I call him Prince of the Sea." I smirked a little at that. It was true. When Nico wanted my help, he wouldn't call my name, he'd call me Prince of the Sea or simply Prince. His imagination was pretty spot on for being thirteen.

"Hi Percy," Oliver said, gazing over the Prince of Shadows shoulder. "It's nice to meet you up close." He reached out to shake my hand, but Nico slipped a bit and he quickly wrapped his arms around him again. He settled on a short nod toward me.

"Percy, Oliver asked me out!" Nico exclaimed, wrapping his arms around the tall boy (who was admittedly taller than me). "I said yes!" he continued happily, and Oliver pecked his cheek. I saw red momentarily as I lunged at Oliver. He moved back and Nico screamed, burying his head in the wisdom goddess's son's chest.

"What the hell was that for?" he snarled, still shielding my precious Prince of Shadows. "You're going to scare Nico." I snorted back laughter.

"Nothing scares Nico," I replied flatly, and he chuckled, because he knew it was true. That was more like the Nico I knew. The dark and mysterious one, not the fun, bubbly, flirty one. "Wait, you're gay buddy?" He turned to Oliver and the taller boy lowered him to the ground. Nico grabbed my elbow and led me to the edge of the clearing. "You're gay buddy?" I repeated. He shifted his weight uncomfortably, and again I was reminded of the old Nico, pre-Oliver Nico.

"Yes," he whispered, though I had no idea why. "Please, Prince," he said, and I knew he said that to try and soften me up. Well it worked. Who could say no to Nico, anyway? "Oliver's great. He makes me feel special. Wanted. Something children of Hades don't get very often." I wanted to scream and shake him, scream at him that I did those things too, but I held back. "I've only known a few weeks I like boys, so…" He trailed off, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jacket.

"I think that's great Nico," I replied tightly. "Want to know something no one else knows? Not even Annabeth." His eyes widened as he nodded. "I'm gay too. You have to promise not to tell anyone, okay?" A big grin broke out on his face as he skipped around me. I followed him with my eyes, smiling.

"I promise Prince," he said. "Wanna go on a double date sometime, though? You and someone and me and Oliver?" The very idea of dining or going anywhere with Nico's new love interest repulsed me and made me want to say things most mother's would be appalled at, but I bit down all things I was feeling. This was Nico I was doing it for. How could I say no to my Prince of Shadows?

"Sure buddy," I replied wearily, placing my hands on his shoulders. "I'll find someone to accompany me, and how about we all go out this Friday? I'm sure Chiron would let us leave for a little quality time." Nico wrapped his arms around my neck and squeezed.

"Thanks Prince," he said (I felt he was using that mostly to get his way). "You go do that. I'll be here with Oliver." He ran back over to the wisdom goddess's son and they sat together, heads bent and talking intently. I made my way back to the dining pavilion, my ears still ringing and everything tinted red. One way or another, I was going to get my Prince of Shadows all to myself.

…

Well, I hope you all liked it. R&R! First Percico so be nice.


	2. Pinky Promises

Hiya everyone. Couldn't wait to update so I'm doing it now. First Percico is going good (and my computer now recognizes Percico as an actual word lol).

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Percy's POV

…

Why did I agree to a double date with Nico and Oliver? Not only did it require me to out myself to someone, it meant I had to watch Nico and Oliver interact as lovers. Nico may be young, but he's quite skilled in things you wouldn't imagine. I would bet that also included naughty things in the bedroom. He acted all sweet and innocent but the real Nico was battle hardened and already more "grown up" then most adults.

"Ugh," I said, rubbing my temples. Just thinking about the upcoming date was giving me a headache. I so didn't want to see my Prince of Shadows making lovey dovey eyes at anyone, yet I couldn't possibly back out of it now. Nico wanted me along for a reason, I could feel it. Now I just had to find a date to accompany me on Friday and also swear to secrecy…

"Prince! Prince!" I turned around in my bunk as Nico slammed the door open, throwing himself onto my bed and wrapping his lithe body around me. He might be lanky but don't let that fool you, he was incredibly strong. "Are you ready for our date on Friday, Prince?" he asked, and my heart soared, only to plummet again. He didn't mean us together, he meant our double date, with our respective partners.

"Sure am buddy," I replied half-heartedly. He tilted his head and studies me. Curst his calculating little brain. I'd curse his dad but the Lord of the Dead could very well make me a part of his army, or worse.

"Prince, no you're not," he said, smiling. "You don't have a date yet. That's why you looked like your brain could burst when I busted in." He bounced on the bed. "How about Malcolm? I know he's Oliver's brother but that could be fun. Oh, or Will. I see him looking at you all the time." I loved the irony of this whole conversation. Here he was, the possible love of my life, trying to set me up with someone else.

"I got this Nico. I'll find someone," I said around a laugh, ruffling his hair. "I'll have someone by Friday, okay? I pinky promise." I held out my pinky finger, and Nico's slightly smaller one wrapped around mine. I smiled. Swearing on the River Styx was dangerous, but pinky promises? They were safe and Nico was still young enough that they worked fine. I wished he'd stay this age forever, old enough to know what he wanted but young enough to believe in the power of pinky promises.

"I trust you, Prince," Nico said, wrapping his arms around my waist and squeezing me with the strength I knew he possessed in that little body of his. "I trust you'll find someone. I know you won't let me down and have me go on that date alone…" He gazed up at me and his eyes were so full of trust I felt my heart both swelling and breaking. I'd better live up to that promise, or I may break more than the promise itself.

"I'm glad you trust me Nico," I said, leaning down and gently brushing my lips against his forehead. He yawned. It was Wednesday, and in the afternoons we didn't have any classes or activities. "Wanna sleep in here buddy? It's nice and quiet and nobody will bother you here." He tugged on my sleeve until I laid down beside him, and he nestled up against me, fisting my orange Camp Half-Blood shirt. I stroked his hair and hummed softly until his eyes closed. "Night, my precious Prince of Shadows," he whispered after a few minutes, when I was sure he was asleep. "I love you."

…

Nico's POV

…

I woke up in Percy's cabin, with him snoring softly beside me. I smiled. He looked cute when he was asleep. It was one of the only times he wasn't moving and he looked kind of peaceful. I gently kissed his forehead and untangled myself from his grasp. This wasn't the first time I've fallen asleep with my Prince of the Sea, and it certainly wouldn't be the last. He was the one I went to when the nightmares got to be too much and I couldn't sleep. Or when I was having a bad day and needed someone to talk to. He told me his door was always open for me. He blinked his eyes open and smiled at me as I perched on the edge of his bunk, swinging my legs.

"Hiya Prince of Shadows," he said, yawning and stretching his arms above his head. When he did, his shirt rose, exposing his six pack. I turned quickly away, trying to fight the color rising on my cheeks.

"Hi Prince of the Sea," I replied softly, staring at the floor. I didn't want him to know that he drove me crazy. He pulled me back and I cuddled against him, sighing contently. Percy was warm, unlike what I was used to, and I found (with some surprise) that I fit perfectly in the curve of his body. He started when he realized this too.

"You fit their perfectly, my shadow prince," he cooed softly, and I chuckled lowly. Percy always used goofy nicknames, and I loved it. "What time is it?" he asked, lazily rubbing circles on my back. I shivered. That felt incredible. I loved Percy to death, more than I wanted to admit to him. In fact, I only agreed to go out with Oliver so he'd finally notice me. He treated me like his little brother, but I didn't want that. I wanted to be the person he held and kissed, and act older than I really was. "Whatcha thinking about buddy?" he whispered.

"Oliver," I said automatically, wincing slightly at the lie. "And about Friday, and my…date." I hesitated over the word. I really didn't want to go out with Oliver, but if Percy would get jealous enough to ask me out, then this whole thing would be worth it. "So, Prince, have you thought about who you're going to ask out." He made a face and sighed, sitting up.

"That new kid, Jason? I might ask him. He seems nice. Annabeth told me he's gay, so…" He trailed off, and I felt the overwhelming urge to strangle someone. The very thought of anyone dating my Prince of the Sea was too much to bear, but I choked down my own emotions and nodded, patting his shoulder encouragingly. "Yeah, Jason," he said dreamily, getting that faraway look I hated. "He'll do nicely."

"Yeah," I gritted out, plastering that fake smile on my face.

…

"Oh Prince I'm so nervous!" I squealed as he helped me adjust my tie. We were both dressed similarly in black slacks, white button downs, and red ties. Percy offered to let me come over to his cabin before our date and freshen up. I used his private bath to shower and brush my teeth, and Percy helped me get dressed in my clothes.

"Don't be buddy. It'll go great. After all, we're heading down to one of the fanciest restaurants in town. We've got a table reserved and you and Oliver can sit side by side. You've tackled worse things than this." I nodded along with his speech.

"But this is the most important thing in my life thus far!" I cried, throwing myself at him. He picked me up and sprayed some cologne in the air, then we both walked through it. We both smelled pleasant now. "I'm scared Prince," I said, burying my head in his shoulder. He gave me a gentle squeeze.

"It'll be okay Nico," he said reassuringly. "I'll be right there with you. Oliver won't hurt you with both me and Jason around." I smiled and hugged him tight.

"Thanks Prince," I said as Jason made his way through the door. He made his way over to Percy and smiled, Percy set me down and smiled back at Jason, looking him over. He whistled softly, and Jason laughed. I admit, Jason looked good in his dark blue skinny jeans and black long sleeved shirt that hugged his shoulders and waist. He was going to take my Percy away from me.

"You look good Jason," Percy said appreciatively, running his hands down Jason's chest. Jason smiled and grabbed Percy's upper arms. I wanted to distract Percy, so I put my cuteness to use. I began to cry, and held out my arms to him.

"Prince!" I wailed. He ran over to me and scooped me up, hugging me to his chest, ruffling his shirt and tie in the process.

"Shh, it's okay Nico," he soothed, stroking my hair. "It's okay." I noticed the angry look on Jason's face, and inside I cheered.

"What's with this Prince?" he demanded. Percy turned to him, his eyes blazing.

"Watch what you say," he warned. "I call him Prince of Shadows and he calls me Prince of the Sea, or Prince for short. We've called each other that for a long time. It's just an affectionate nickname, like ones given to siblings." That one stabbed my heart, but I didn't let it show. "You all better now buddy?" he asked me. At my nod, he set me back on my own feet and he went over to Jason, wrapping his arms around his neck.

"Prince!" I wailed again. "He's going to take you away from me!" He stamped my foot and sat down on his bed, burying my head in my hands and bursting into tears. Sighing, Percy knelt beside me.

"I'll always be here when you need me, okay?" he said, holding out his pinky finger. "Pinky promise." I wrapped mine around his, noticing the difference in the sizes.

"Pinky promise," I replied, wiping my nose with my sleeve.

…

We met Oliver outside the Athena cabin, then we let Argus lead us to the camp van. He would be driving us to the restaurant, dropping us off, and picking us up two hours later. Oliver twined his fingers with mine, and I gave him a nervous smiled. Not only was this my first date with a boy, it was my first date in general. I'd always hoped my first real date would be with Percy, and in a weird, twisted way, it was. He was just…being accompanied by another boy, and so was I.

"Are you looking forward to this?" Jason asked our small group as we filed into the van. I noticed Percy moved to sit in back with Jason instead of sitting up with me like he normally did when we went somewhere in the van. I frowned as I buckled my seatbelt. Oliver smiled and squeezed my hand gently. It felt nice, but nothing like when Percy did it.

"Yep," Percy replied, lacing his fingers behind his head and leaning back, being fucking adorable as usual. "I haven't been out of camp bounds in a long while. It'll be good to stretch our legs." I nodded in agreement and pried my hand away from Oliver. He tightened his grip momentarily, and I yelped. Percy pried out hands apart swiftly, rubbing my hand with his. "Don't do that," he said to Oliver. "If he wants his hand back you give him his hand back, understand?" Oliver nodded and sulked, and I cheered for Percy.

"Thanks Pr…Percy," I said, changing it at the last minute. I turned to face the seat in front of me, pouting. This date was not off to a good start.

…

The next chapter will be their date. It'll be so much fun! As always, R&R.


	3. The Date that Ends Horribly

I really hate my writer's brain. I was trying to go to bed and he's like "oh, they could do this, and Nico could do this to get Percy's attention…" Grrr, sometimes I hate him. I know it's a him because no female on earth will bug you that much at bed time (sorry to my male fans but it is true).

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Percy's POV

…

We arrived at the restaurant after a very tense, awkward silence filled ride. Nico seemed to be pouting, and Oliver acted like a kid who'd been grounded. Nico's behavior I was used to, and he could get away with it more because he was three years younger than all of us. But Oliver was being a royal pain in my ass right now, and this whole date would've gone better had he not been there. Or Jason too, for that matter.

"Something goes on between you two," Jason hissed to me as if reading my mind. I leaned in closer so the boys up front wouldn't hear. "You and Nico are awfully close. Come to think of it, I don't think I've seen either one of you around camp without the other. You're practically glued at the hip." I chuckled lowly at the comment. It was a pretty accurate one.

"We're here Percy," Nico sang to me in that sing-song voice he got. He and Oliver climbed out, followed by Jason and last me. I waved to Argus, who waved back, the eyeball on his wrist winking at me. He sped off and left us to our own devices. Jason laced our fingers together as we led the way into the restaurant. The person behind the pedestal glanced at our small group.

"Reservation for Jackson," I said. He nodded once, grabbed four menus, and led us to a table in the middle of the dining area. "Enjoy your meal," he said pleasantly, floating off. We all took our seats, but when we were all situated, Nico's lower lip began to tremble. "What is it buddy?" I asked, looking around. "Oh." I was seated across from Oliver, which meant Jason was across from Nico. "Trade me places," I said, rising. Jason shrugged and switched seats. Nico's face cleared and he stared at his menu, swinging his legs under the table. "Nico," I hissed. "Don't do that here." He stopped, staring at me. I buried my head in my menu. Honestly, nothing looked good. But I had to order something because for the last few days I hadn't eaten anything.

"We'll both take steak," Oliver said, handing Nico's menu over. Nico scowled at him, and I quickly looked over the selection.

"Chicken for me," I said, knowing Nico would eat that. He loved chicken. His face lit up when he realized what I was doing. Jason glanced at me and continued to stare at his menu.

"Salmon," he decided, and we also handed out menus over. Nico watched as they set glasses of water in front of us. "Cool," Jason said. "Percy, you could drink this without a straw or raising the glass." I smirked and picked it up the old fashioned way. "Alright then," Jason said, clinking his glass against mine, then taking a sip. Nico stared at his glass with distaste.

"Nico sweetie, drink up," I said gently, pushing it toward him. He took a sip and looked at me. "Good boy," I mouthed, taking a sip out of my own glass. Mine and Jason's food arrived first, and Nico's stared at mine until his came. He scowled at his steak. I knew he couldn't eat steak, not after the cattle ranch. But I could. I swapped our plates, tucking in hungrily. Nico began sawing bits of chicken off and stuffing them in his mouth.

"What's this?" Oliver asked, glancing at Nico's food. "That isn't what I ordered for us. Eat yours." He swapped out plates back, and Nico pushed his chair back, crossing his arms and acting like a two year old refusing to eat. Oliver then made the mistake of grabbing Nico's arm and hauling him up. Nico cried out in pain, and as Oliver let him go, he sank to the ground. A stain of red began to form on his sleeve. I shoved my chair back and ran around to the other side of the table.

"Nico!" I cried, rolling up his sleeve. Oliver's finger nails had dug into Nico's tender flesh, and he was bleeding from the marks. "Nico, shhh," I said, rocking him as he sobbed into my shirt. "Jason, pay them. Let's go." Jason dug my wallet out of my pocket and laid forty on the table. I cradled Nico to me as I carried him out with Jason close behind me. Oliver followed at a much slower pace, knowing full well what was about to happen. "Here," I said, handing Nico gently over to Jason. Nico clung to him and I took a deep breath.

"Percy, I…" Oliver began.

"What were you thinking?" I roared, and the tall male actually took a step back. "He's just a kid! He also happens to hate steak, which is why I traded meals with him. What the hell kind of stunt was that that you pulled? You're lucky I don't beat your ass here and now for what you did to him. You're very lucky I'm in a nice mood tonight, or you'd be nothing more than a splatter on the street!" When my rant was finished, I whirled around and took Nico from Jason.

"Prince!" he wailed, fisting my shirt. It was getting all wrinkled, but at this point I didn't care. Nico was hurt, and if he needed to do that to feel better, then so be it. He pointed one trembling finger at Oliver then at me. "You promised he wouldn't hurt me! You said you'd be there for me and you couldn't stop him from hurting me! I hate you! I hate you both!" I set Nico down and took a step back.

"You…you hate me?" I asked, my voice breaking. "Okay then." My head dropped lower than his dad's palace. "C'mon Jason, let's go somewhere else and finish our date." Jason shot Nico murderous looks as we walked away. Though why he did, I wasn't sure. As I said, Nico was just a kid.

…

We never actually went anywhere else. We wandered around together until we came to Central Park. Jason shoved me into it, and we sank down on a bench. That was good because I don't think my legs could hold me up any longer. I was beginning to feel the effects of Nico's words, where before I just went numb. Without a word, Jason pulled me close.

"It's okay, Percy," he soothed. "Don't cry." Cry? I put my hand up to my cheek and it came away wet. So I was finally crying about what Nico told me. I could handle a lot of things. Big, scary monsters, thousand foot free falls, even the gross food they served in the school cafeteria. But Nico saying he hated me? That hurt like you wouldn't believe.

"Thanks Jason," I said, sniffing. "You're a good pal." I sat up and dabbed my eyes, getting rid of the last of the tears. "Say, why don't we continue this date some other time? I think without two extra people, it would be enjoyable. I'd like to get to know you better." And I meant it. Maybe it was best that I forget about my Prince of Shadows, even for a few hours. Jason smiled and hugged me close, kissing my forehead.

"I'd like that Percy," he replied. "I'd like that."

…

Nico's POV

…

I sent Argus and Iris-message when Percy and Jason left. I told him to take me and Oliver home now, and he did. When we arrived at camp, I told Oliver I didn't want to see him ever again and if he came anywhere near me I'd use my underworld powers and turn him into a ball of sludge (I couldn't really do that but he didn't know that). Oliver ran off so fast I just caught his smoke line. I smiled momentarily before wandering down to the cabins.

"Princess!" I cried, pounding on the Athena door. I should explain. I call Percy Prince , and since Annabeth is one of his best friends, it seemed fitting (to me at least) to call her Princess. Annabeth threw open the door and bundled me inside. "Princess, I told Prince I hate him!" I wailed, burying my head in her chest. Next to Percy, Annabeth was the second person I went to when I had a problem. She was very wise and normally had the answer for everything.

"What happened Nico?" she asked, trying again to shush me. I looked around and noticed some of her younger brothers and sisters already asleep. I did my best to stifle my cries, and Annabeth smiled, kissing the top of my head. "Okay, so start from the beginning, okay Nico? What happened?" I took a deep breath.

"We got to the restaurant and we all sat down. But first Percy had to trade with Jason so he could be across from me. We all ordered. Oliver ordered steak for us both but I hate steak. Percy ordered chicken and Jason ordered salmon. Then our food came and Percy traded cause he knew I'd like chicken. Then Oliver traded them back, and when I wouldn't eat, he grabbed my arm and gave me these." I showed her the nail marks on my arm, now turning a sickly purplish color. "Then we all went outside and I told Percy I hated him." The tears began to fall again. 'I made a mistake Princess. I don't hate him. I... I love him." Gods, did I really just say that?

"I'm sure he loves you too little buddy," she said, smoothing down my unruly hair. I shot her looks. I knew she was just talking about the brotherly kind of love, but that wasn't what I meant. I let her keep thinking that though. I didn't want things to get to complicated. "Come on Nico, you know Chiron's room," she continued, carrying me to my cabin. "All young demigods down by nine thirty." I hated that dumb rule. I waved as she walked back to her own cabin. I sighed. Without Percy to tuck me in, it would be a long night.

…

Nightmares plagued me all night long. I tossed and turned and woke up in cold sweat more than once. I couldn't go talk to Prince either, because he probably didn't want to see me right now. The Hades cabin was creepy in the day, but at night, it was downright terrifying. I shivered and pulled my blanket up to my chin.

"They're just nightmares Nico," I scolded myself. "You don't need Percy to fall asleep. You don't need him for anything.

…

Percy's POV

…

Sleeping was impossible. Without the warmth of a small body pressed up to me, I tossed and turned and generally stayed awake. I sighed and sat up, bumping against something. Nico's sword. I picked it up off my mattress and held it in my hands, running my fingers over the black metal. I put it on the table beside my bed. If he came back, he could retrieve it then. Making some quick decisions, I sneaked out of my cabin and tiptoed to the Hades cabin. I peeked inside. Nico was curled up in the corner of the bunk he slept in (when he slept in his cabin at all. He'd discarded his jacket and black t-shirt and was currently in black pajama bottoms.

"Aww, you look so cute, my precious Prince of Shadows," I whispered. "Why do you hate me buddy? I mean, I know I broke my promise, but still…" I stopped. I did break my promise to him. I told him Oliver wouldn't hurt him on our date, and he did just that. If I saw Oliver in the next few days, I would beat the shit out of him for harming my shadow prince. "Night buddy," I whispered, slipping back into my cabin. But right now I felt more awake, and more alone, than ever.

…

Dun dun duuuuuh! What will happen between Percy and Nico? R&R!


	4. Author's Note

I would like to say, for the record, Nico may act kind of young, but he's still thirteen, and in later chapters, will display that. Right now, he just wants to get Percy's attention and that is how he does it.

I would also like to point out that this site is a place for fans to write about whatever they please. After all, it is FANfiction. So, if I want Nico to not act like Nico, so be it. He's OCC, not a sniveling toddler. I know how far to take him before he acts that way, and he won't act that way, because of his age.

Would anyone else like to belittle my writing or my story? I have plenty more updates if you do. Thank you for your time! Have a nice day! And if you don't like it, don't read it! hehehe


	5. Nico's Baby Steps and Percy's Date

I will continue to write this, because I am proud of it! And Nico will do a 180 in the next few chapters, just watch the beautiful transformation of the shadow prince. Also, thanks for the reviews and the ideas . I think I'll use a few of them. Or all of them! They're pretty good.

…

Nico's POV

…

I realized the next morning how few friends I actually had. I mean, besides Percy (who probably wouldn't talk to me after last night), and Annabeth (only because she was friends with Percy), I didn't really have any other friends. I knew most of the campers, and I talked to Will and Malcolm from time to time, but you could hardly call them my friends. I wanted to get someone else to talk to and be friends with. I did realize that my behavior at the date was not exactly at a thirteen year olds level. Maybe having someone else would fix that?

"Hi," I big guy said, sliding onto the bench next to me. I glanced at him quickly, racking my brains. Leo Valdez, Hephaestus cabin. Great. Oh hey, maybe this could be my new friend. Tone down the childish acts Nico, I said to myself, taking a breath.

"Hi Leo," I said, and I noticed the start of surprise when he realized I knew his name. "I know most people by sight," I explained, blushing slightly. Not like I was observant. Normally I was busy trying to get Percy's attention. Maybe that was part of the problem though. He liked my childish side fine, but last night was… over the top. I needed to tone it down and maybe get Percy's attention in a different way.

"Where's your boyfriend?" he asked, looking around. I practically jumped out of my seat. "Not your boyfriend?" Leo guessed, smacking his forehead. "Sorry man. Big mouth, you know." He took a swig of juice. I decided I kind of liked Leo. He was a bit clumsy and he was extremely funny. I think he also liked Jason? On that I wasn't sure. I did know they spent a lot of time together.

"That's okay," I said, not quite believing what I was actually going to say to him. "But I want him to be my boyfriend. I tried to date others but… well let's just say it didn't work out that well." Leo smirked and nodded with me. "Don't you like Jason?" I asked innocently, taking just a bit of the childish innocence still in me and using it in a beneficial way. Leo's smile melted right off his face and was quickly replaced with a scowl.

"Yeah," he mumbled. "But your little… Prince of the Sea is it? Or Prince?" I blushed and nodded, waving him onto the point. "He's captured Jason's attention with that date last night. Apparently they actually had a decent time on their own last night and will try it again on another date." I felt my stomach burning with jealousy, but I didn't want to show it, so I covered it up by taking a larger than normal bite of my cheerios.

"Guess that's something we have in common," I replied after I swallowed down the now mushy cereal. "Percy is dating Jason, and I don't like that. Jason is dating Percy, and you don't like that. Wanna discuss it some more tonight, say at my place. I feel kinda lonely there sometimes, since I'm the only one in the Hades cabin."

"You have it all to yourself?" Leo asked in disbelief. "No way! Oh I'm so staying the night with you! Be there after some rock wall." Leo moved off and discarded his dishes. I smiled to his retreating form, finally getting all the puzzle pieces to click into place.

I'd made a friend.

…

Percy's POV

…

"Jason, this has been great," I said as we left the little coffee shop. For our second date we downplayed and went out for coffee (or in Jason's case hot chocolate). "It's a nice night," I added, looking up at the black sky. I knew it was clear without actually seeing anything. When you live in New York, you learn to tell when bad weather was coming. Jason smiled and laced his fingers through mine. Even now, it felt kind of awkward, and I wondered if Jason was really as into it as he claimed to be.

"Beautiful," he agreed. "My father is being generous tonight." You'd think the way he said it, all casual like, he'd say "yeah, my dog is brown" or some other shit like that. The very idea was so ludicrous, I began to snicker. Jason smiled at me and rolled his eyes to the heavens. "Percy Jackson, you sure are something," he said.

"You are something yourself, Jason Grace," I replied, grinning. Jason wrapped his arms around me and went in for a kiss, but I noticed the hesitation. "Jason, what's wrong?" I asked. He backed off, looking sheepish. "Oh, don't worry about a kiss," I said around a laugh. "Leo, right?" His eyebrows shot up.

"How'd you guess?" he asked, then shrugged off the comment. "You know everything," he decided. "You and Nico, huh? He's kind of childish…" He trailed off, realizing he might have said the wrong thing. "Oh, I don't mean it's a bad thing!" he said quickly. "I mean he's… he…" Jason appeared flustered, which only served to make me laugh harder.

"Oh relax," I said, standing upright. "I know he's kind of childish. You have to realize that this kid got his childhood yanked away from him. Not only that, but he doesn't remember much of it. He's technically 113." Jason's eyes widened. "It's a very long story involving a casino/hotel. But the point is, I think it's kind of cute. I figure he does it mostly to get my attention. Annabeth says he doesn't put on that quite a show when I'm not around."

"How old is Nico?" Jason asked.

"As I said, technically, he's 113. But in mortal years he's thirteen. I know that's three years younger than us, but still. Nico's incredible. We've been through so much together. I couldn't imagine having anyone by my side except Nico. If I was straight, it might be Annabeth but…" I shrugged. Annabeth liked someone else anyway (although she refused to tell me who).

"You guys had a pretty nasty scrap last night," Jason commented, and I frowned. It was true. Nico had never once told me he hated me, so this one hurt me more than I would've thought. "Hey, I know it makes you sad, but don't look like that. It's not a good look on you, Jackson," I smirked at him. Jason had this uncanny ability to make me smile when I wanted to cry. Reminded me of a certain small, dark son of Hades. "Why don't you try talking to him?" the blonde boy suggested. "You two are obviously close. I'd hate to see you never talk to him again."

"Damn good idea," I replied, smiling. "Damn good idea indeed."

…

Nico's POV

…

"He made those marks?" Leo asked, gazing at my arm. The marks were going to stay purplish for a while, but I didn't mind. They would remind me it was time to grow up. "You're pretty brave kid," Leo said. I smacked his arm and dissolved into giggles as he clutched his arm in mock pain. "So you jump into his arms?" he asked, getting back to our original topic. I drew my knees up to my chest.

"Yeah," I said. "He says I'm adorable when I do it, which is why I do it. It gets his attention, and that's what I want. Besides Bianca, I've never really had someone fuss over me." My eyes clouded over and I reached far into my memories. "At least, no one I can remember. Anyway, Percy's always taken good care of me, and he's always said I acted the way I did because I don't remember much of my childhood. I'm not sure if that's true or not, but I don't want to act that way anymore. It's not getting me anywhere. I want to be someone Percy would be proud to date, not his…little brother." That was the best word I could use to describe my awful behavior.

"You and Percy are really close, aren't you?" Leo asked, not really prying, probably just curious. "Jason and I can be the same way. Close I mean. We always have each other's back, and we go everywhere with each other. Everywhere we can anyway." He smiled up at me from the floor. I was sitting on my bunk, but Leo said he didn't feel right sleeping in one of the others, so he spread a sleeping bag out on the floor. "You say Percy likes your…adorableness?" I nodded, tilting my head to the side and studying him. Leo was smart in his own way, and I could see him doing some quick calculations. "Don't give it up entirely then. Still act cute, but channel it. Smile more often. You've got a great smile. No one likes a dark son of Hades." I blushed at the sudden compliment. "Giggle and flirt. Crawl onto his lap, but don't stay there. No more temper tantrums, and no more late night meetings. Learn to sleep on your own." That one would be hard.

"I like to snuggle," I protested. "Who doesn't? Besides, I fit perfectly against Percy, making him an ideal cuddle partner." Leo held up his hands.

"Alright, alright, but wait until you're a couple, if that's what you're really after," I replied. "My point is, use that cuteness to your advantage, but don't overdo it. I'm sure Percy can tolerate it, but even the great Percy Jackson has limits. One day, your little cute out will push him over the edge, because you won't be thirteen forever." I stared at him for the longest time. He honestly just said that to me, the kid who's been thirteen for a hundred years?

"Sure," I said, rolling my eyes, reaching over and smacking his arm. I slunk back on my bunk as Leo crawled up after me. I perched on his leg, smiling. Then I slipped off and gazed over my shoulder. Leo chuckled.

"Work what you got Nico!" he whooped, and we both fell back side by side, dying of laughter.

…

Percy's POV

…

Seeing Nico with Leo was a double blow. Not only was my precious Prince of Shadows with another boy, but it was Jason's crush of all people. And the worst part was they actually looked like they were having fun. Nico gazed over his shoulder at him (looking sexy as hell), then Leo said something and they both fell over laughing. It seemed Nico was still tapping into his cute, but it seemed…more controlled. Like he was holding back. I knew if he wanted, he'd have Leo wrapped around his finger, but they appeared to be equals during this exchange.

"Whatcha see Perce?" Jason asked me, looking concerned. I turned to study the blonde. This wouldn't hurt just me, I was now beginning to see. Jason may equally be crushed.

"Nico's having a little slumber party," I gritted out, and when he shrugged, I added, "With Leo." Jason seemed to freeze in place and thousand emotions flickered across his face at once. "It seems they have gotten closer. They almost appeared to be… a couple."

"No," Jason said in disbelief. "Leo wouldn't do that. He doesn't like younger boys. No offense to Nico," he quickly added at my best Percy Glare. "But Leo wants someone his own age. At least, that's what he's always told me…" He trailed off, looking a little unsure of himself.

"Nico I'm not sure about," I admitted. "He appears to go for our age group, but that could be just a phase as Annabeth said. All the same, I do not like the scene in there. Have they both given up on us and instead giving each other a try?" Jason shook his head, adamant.

"Nope," he said bluntly. "Maybe they're just friends. You said it yourself, Nico's a bit of a loner, doesn't have many friends. Maybe he's finally branching out. Percy, you knew he wouldn't always need you." He added that in a gentler tone. "He may very well be telling you he's ready to grow up." I glanced back in the window, where both Nico and Leo were getting situated.

"Not too fast, Prince of Shadows," I whispered, resting my fingers against the cool glass of the window. "Don't stop being your adorable self. I don't think I could take it if I lost my little buddy entirely. Also, Leo better be good for you, or I'm going to have to do some serious ass whooping."

…

What do you think of Nico's steps to becoming more like his age, starting with forging a new friendship that may actually help his relationship with Prince (as he called him). Don't worry, that nickname's not gone for good, but it will appear less and less as Nico starts acting more mature. As always, R&R!


	6. Percy's Discovery

I'm glad people like Nico's turn around. You have to realize that Nico never really got to be a kid, so he's trying to make up for it now. But as Leo said, he won't be thirteen forever. Now he's going to start maturing. Do you think Percy will like that?

…

Percy's POV

…

I didn't see Nico much after that, and when I did, he was with Leo. Here's the thing. Nico didn't skip around him. He didn't jump into his arms or climb onto his back. He basically acted like any other thirteen year old, and half the time I wondered what happened to my little buddy, my precious shadow prince. I didn't want him growing up too fast (although dropping the temper tantrums would be nice).

"Oh, don't look like that," Jason said, elbowing me in the ribs. "They're just friends. You think I like this any better than you do? Your old best friend stole my old best friend." I kept forgetting how close Jason and Leo were. I guess I've never really seen them around the camp before. We were sitting on the docks, talking and trying not to get sprayed with water. Jason had shed his shirt and was sitting in just shorts, and I admit he looked good. Though I knew the real motive for it, and it sure as hell wasn't for me.

"Leo isn't looking," I said with a scowl. Jason shrugged and leaned against one of the posts, closing his eyes and enjoying the sunshine. I couldn't enjoy it today. Something was eating at me, and I couldn't quite place a finger on what. I wiggled in place, then stood and paced for a bit. Jason opened one eye half way and watched me for a while.

"Oh relax Jackson," he said with a sigh. "Your precious Prince of Shadows will come and talk to you eventually. Just give him some time to sort things out. He's obviously making an effort to act older. Let him get used to that. He might want to get your attention with a different tactic, such as showing you how mature he can be." I glanced sideways at Jason. No offense to the blonde boy, but he never acted that smart before. As if sensing what I was thinking, he shrugged. "This is important stuff," he said simply.

"Right, right," I mumbled in agreement. "Wanna go do something other than sit here?" He looked at me like the very idea was crazy. "Man, I'm ADHD. I have to move or do something other than sit here and wait for something to happen." Jason sighed and stood up.

"Let's go do the rock wall then," he said, retrieving his shirt. Orange Camp Half-Blood that was slightly too small. "That'll keep you on your toes." I wrinkled my nose. The rock wall was fine and all, but I didn't want to do that.

"I was thinking of a spy mission," I replied. "On Nico and Leo. I know you said they're just friends, but I want to be extra sure that that is the case." Jason shrugged. There were two things demigods were good at. Fighting and spying, not in that order of course. "You could watch for Leo," I added meaningfully. Jason seemed to perk at the idea. I knew getting him to follow Leo would work, because I've come to realize that Jason is absolutely crazy about Leo.

"Alright Jackson, you made that sound very appealing," he said, slipping his shirt and sandals back on. I retrieved my sneakers and we jobbed down the path towards the cabins. I noticed Nico had his sword in his hands, and Leo was facing him. They were circling each other, looking fierce.

"Holy Zeus," I hissed, moving forward. Jason grabbed the hem of my shirt and hauled me behind the Aphrodite cabin, where we continued to watch.

"Calm down Jackson," he hissed back. "They're not actually fighting. Leo's teaching him to fight better. He relied heavily on you before, you know." Jason had a point, and as I watched, it appeared that Leo wasn't out to harm the shadow prince. Quite the opposite actually. He made no move to attack him at all, and Nico was the first to lunge and begin a series of sword strokes. I blinked. If I'd of known that he was capable of that, I wouldn't have messed with him, ever. His movements were smoother than I remember, and when Leo went to counterstrike, the smaller boy nimbly danced away, and both boys laughed. "They're enjoying themselves," Jason whispered with a frown. Neither of us wanted to watch them get along.

"Yeah," I agreed, also frowning. "Nico has gotten better with that sword of his. He never told me he wanted sword practice…" I was really beginning to hate Leo, mostly because he was taking my Prince of Shadows from me. I watched as Leo heartily smacked Nico's back. Before, if someone had done that, the smaller boy would've collapsed, but now he stood firm. He even grinned up at Leo. Nico was getting stronger every day.

"Nico's looking good," Jason said to me. "He's losing that little boy look and gaining muscles. He's shed those clothes and wearing something more sophisticated." The idea set my teeth grinding. He was doing this all for Leo. Leo handed Nico a water bottle, which he drained half of. Nico drinking water? He hated plain water (I love the irony in that as well). So Leo was changing him in more ways than one.

"Leo's got the looks too," I replied at last, more for Jason's sake than anything. He bit his lower lip and watched as Leo slid his shirt over his head. Nico laughed and gently touched his chest, and when Leo flexed, Nico laughed more. Leo rolled his eyes and patted Nico's shoulder, sliding the smaller boy's shirt off him as well. I sucked in a breath. Nico was definitely beginning to show muscle, even getting a small six pack of his own.

"Damn," Jason breathed. "We sure know how to pick 'em Jackson. Just look at our beauties." I glanced at them both, each now trying to douse the other with bottled water. Nico threw his head back and laughed loudly, and his black hair flicked out of his eyes. He had great eyes…

"We sure do, Jason," I replied half-heartedly, "We sure do. I just hope my Prince of Shadows doesn't grow up too quickly. He's thirteen, not thirty."

…

Nico's POV

…

"Thanks for helping me with my sword practice," I said to Leo as he took his shirt off. I don't know why he did that, but it made him happy, so I never said anything. One thing I was leaning, part of growing up was making sure others were also happy. I drank my half of a bottle of water (which I was beginning to like a lot), and sprayed Leo with the other half. He laughed and sprayed me back, and then all-out war began. I ran away from him, occasionally stopping to squirt him with my water bottle. Then I danced away as he tried to squirt me back.

"Uncle!" Leo cried after a few minutes, laughing. "You're pretty good at that Nico," he said, slapping me on the back. I staggered a bit under the force (I don't think he realized how strong he was) but I managed to stay on my own two feet, which was something. I was definitely getting stronger. Leo took my shirt off me. "Hey look buddy, you're getting muscle," I looked down at myself and noticed the six pack starting to come in, as well as some extra bulk on my arms and around my chest. I was very pleased.

"Thanks again for helping," I said to Leo. "Do you think Percy will like the new, buff me?" I flexed for him, and he laughed.

"Yes buddy," he said, smacking my back again (it was starting to hurt). "I'm drooling, and I don't even want to date you. You have this part in the bag. Now we need to work on your attitude." I pouted at him.

"What's wrong with it?" I asked, putting on my puppy dog stare. "Is it bad?" He laughed out loud and shook his head, resting his hand on my shoulder.

"No, no," he replied. "I'm just going to help you channel it a little, so it's not overwhelming. Wanna do it tonight?" I nodded. Tonight would be perfect.

…

Percy's POV

…

"Oh Goddess, accept my offering," I mumbled, tossing a gold drachma into the little rainbow my fountain made. The coin dissolved. "Show me my mom's apartment," I said wearily, smearing a hand across my face. The image flickered, then revealed my mom sitting at our kitchen table with Paul, my stepdad. They appeared to be eating dinner. "Mom!" I called. Both she and Paul jerked up and looked where my image was. A smile lit her face as she abandoned the dinner and came over to talk.

"Percy!" she exclaimed. "It's so good to hear from you sweetie. How's Annabeth? How's Nico?" I made a face at Nico's name. "What's going on honey?" she asked, the smile melting.

"Nico and I got into a fight the other night," I said. "Mom…he said he hated me. But I can't live with that because… I think I love him." I covered my face with my hands. There were few things that scared me in this world. Telling my mom I loved someone was one of them. "More than as a little brother or friend," I continued. "The way that would have him with me always."

"Percy honey, I know," she replied. I yanked my hands away and gawked at her.

"What do you mean you know?" I accused. "And why didn't you tell me you knew?" She grinned at me.

"I was waiting for you to figure it out yourself honey," I said to me, and my anger instantly dissolved. Once a mother always a mother. "It's not a big deal Percy. I mean, your fight is a big deal because you guys have gotten close. Closer than any two people I know. Closer than you and Annabeth even." She made a good point. Before this, Annabeth was one of my best friends, and she still was. But Nico was my best friend, and he would continue to be, unless he was my boyfriend, which I hoped he would be. "Just give him so cool off time Percy," my mom continued. "You know how he gets." At that I had to smile.

"Yeah mom, I know," I replied with a chuckle. "Well, I'd better get going. Jason and I have plans tonight. He's my new friend!" I said before she could interject. "Bye!" I slashed through the rainbow, cutting out our connection.

…

Talking with my mom helped a lot. She was right, and so was Jason. Nico couldn't really hate me. He just needed some time to cool off before he talked to me again. At least Leo was getting his mind off his horrible date last week… Had it really been a week already? Time seemed to fly by. Nico would come by on his own terms, and hopefully he'd be slightly more mature than what he was now. But not too mature. As I said before, he's thirteen, not thirty.

…

Nico's POV

…

Percy hadn't even looked at me this whole week, and that made me sad. I know Leo said not to cry as much anymore, but as I lay in my bunk, I couldn't help but let the tears fall. Leo was in his own cabin tonight, which meant I could cry in peace. I was missing my Prince of the Sea more than I realized. Not talking to him was driving me crazy, but I wasn't quite ready to face him yet. I wanted to build up my strength and learn to channel my cuteness more first. Leo said I was making huge strides, but it would still be a week or two before I was in peak physical form, and learned to tone down my cuteness and work on my attitude.

"I miss you Prince," I whispered, swiping at my eyes. "I miss you a lot. I'll talk to you soon, kay." I held out my pinky to my dark room. "Pinky promise."

…

Aww, poor Nico. He misses his Prince. Told you that it wouldn't be gone for good. R&R!


	7. The Make-Up and Jason's Past

Merry Christmas Everyone. Or happy Wednesday if you don't celebrate Christmas. Here's another one of my famous fast updates. I am loving House of Hades! Nico is actually gay, woo!

…

Nico's POV

…

I woke up to Leo shaking me. That in itself isn't abnormal, but the mad look on his face was. I blinked awake and rubbed my eyes, yawning. Leo scowled at me some more, and I looked at him, confused.

"Why are you mad at me?" I pouted, turning on the charm. I fisted his shirt and stared up at him, teary eyed. "Did I do something wrong?" Leo watched me for a while, and the anger seemed to dissolve. "Yay, you aren't mad," I said, wrapping my arms around his waist, squeezing. If any anger was left in his body, it melted away with that and he laughed, hugging me back.

"I honestly don't remember why I was mad at you, buddy," he replied, ruffling my hair. "You're so cute. Good job channeling it." I grinned up at him. It was one of many things we'd been working on over the course of a week. I'd been getting better at it, and trying it out on Leo worked wonders. "You can go try to talk to him now, if you want," Leo continued casually, resting his hands on his hips. It was moves like that that reminded me that Leo had a thing for Jason, and he was probably helping me so he learning a thing or two along the way about the art of cuteness. Leo was a brute, by the nicest definition, so he couldn't possibly crawl into the blonde son of the storm lord's lap. I don't think he cared, he'd do something to get his attention, same way as I would get Percy's.

…

"Percy!" I called as I wandered around camp. He'd disappeared and I wasn't sure where he went. It made me a little nervous, and my palms were sweaty. I wiped them on my jeans and continued to wander. Was he avoiding me? I knew what I said was harsh and uncalled for, but I didn't really mean it. I didn't hate him. Quite the opposite really. I think I loved him. "Percy!" I called again, choking back a sob.

"What is it Nico?" he asked, coming up the trail from the lake. He dried his hair with a white towel as he came, which I found strange since he could just will the water off. But then again, we all tried to live as normal lives as possible, and I guess that also included drying the old fashioned way. "Nico?" he asked, looking me over. "What happened to your clothes?" I ran down the path and plowed into him, wrapping my arms around his waist, breathing in the salty scent of him. He smelled like the sea and cinnamon (I wasn't going to ask).

"I'm so sorry Percy!" I blurted out. "What I said was stupid and wrong and I don't hate you!" I squeezed him tighter. He gently pried me away from him and chuckled, ruffling my hair. All the pain and hurt I'd caused him that I'd seen when I passed him during the week seemed to evaporate.

"It's okay Nico, it's okay," he said with a laugh, lifting me up. I wrapped my legs around his waist to anchor myself, and he smiled. "You act so grown up now Nico," he said, grinning at me. "But I see you're not too grown up to let me pick you up and hug you." He squeezed my middle and I gasped at the force. He must have really missed me.

"I've been practicing," I said with a shrug. "Leo…" I trailed off, watching him. I saw a momentary flash of jealousy and protectiveness, but then it was gone and he smiled easily, urging me to continue. "He's been helping me a lot. He helped me learn to sword fight better. He also taught me how to channel my cuteness, which I didn't want to get rid of entirely cause you like it." I beamed at him like old times sake, then continued with what I was saying before. "He also went shopping with me, shadow travel style." I smiled at the memory. Leo swore me all the way to Olympus while we were doing it, and cursed my name to every god and goddess he could name. "That's why I have new clothes. And I got muscles!" I flexed and he laughed, setting me down.

"I must say Nico, you look good," he said, eyeing me up and down. He gently lifted my shirt up and admired my six pack. "You finally have one Nico," he said with a big grin. "You really do look good. You even have an orange shirt on." I blushed. It was plain orange but it was close to Percy's. I didn't want a Camp Half-Blood one, not until I felt I better belonged.

"I've been practicing," I replied, coughing at his praise. It was few and far between I got that. "Hey, tell you what. I won't be mean to you every again, kay?" I held out my pinky. "Pinky promise." Percy threw back his head and laughed, wrapping his around mine.

"Pinky promise," he echoed. I smiled up at him. Seems like whatever feelings of hurt we had evaporated with this talk.

…

Percy's POV

…

My Prince of Shadows looked even better up close. He'd bulked with muscles in the last week, and he'd shed some of the little boy fat and become lean in the middle, better to show off his six pack coming in. His clothes no longer doted characters from games and TV shows, instead he pranced around in solid colors and stuff that most older teens would wear, skinny jeans instead of baggy, black jacket perfectly in place. He looked good. I'd told him I'd catch up with him later, and he accepted that and ran off toward his cabin.

"Damn Jason, he's changed," I said as we sat together by the creek. We had our backs against a rock at the water's edge, and Jason was enjoying letting the cool water run over his feet. Jason had a fascination with water I couldn't quite figure out. It was the equivalent of me being fascinated with air patterns, which was ironic.

"Isn't that a good thing?" Jason asked, drawing his feet out of the water and plunging his hands in instead. He briefly reminded me of a toddler playing in a water tray, but then I dismissed the idea. "He didn't throw a fit when you told him you were going to leave him to his own devices. I'd figure you'd be happy with that." He began playing with the rocky/sandy bottom, and again I got that toddler flash.

"I am," I replied, shedding my shorts and wading out. Jason followed behind me, seeming to enjoy the unplanned swim. "I guess I miss it too," I continued. "I mean, he's Nico, but not at the same time. He looks like Nico, he sometimes acts like him, but at the end of the day, he's changed."

"I don't see why you're complaining," Jason protested, swimming upstream. "Hey, guess what Leo did today while you were talking to your lover." I flared bright red but said nothing. "He tried acting cute. And since he tried, he was. I think that little guy of yours is rubbing off on him too." I smiled. So Leo wasn't helping Nico purely to help Nico. He had a hidden agenda as well.

"That's good to hear," I called as I swam up to meet him. "So Leo's got your eye now?" Jason turned the color of a tomato and looked down at his hands. I don't think I've ever seen the great Jason Grace embarrassed before, but he clearly was. "You don't have to talk about your private life," I said gently. "I didn't mean to pry."

"No, it's…it's okay," he whispered. "Leo… what can I say? He's incredible. Like you and Nico, we've been through a lot together. He's had my back countless times, and in fact he's saved it several. I don't think I could ever repay him for that." I nodded. I knew where he was coming from. "Leo and I have this connection I don't feel with anyone else, not even Piper. Gods, especially not Piper." I wrinkled my nose at that. The very idea of dating a girl was ludicrous. "I've never talked about my personal life Percy," he whispered, looking at me. "I've never been comfortable enough with anyone to do so." He waded over and wrapped me in a hug, one of a forever friendship. "Thank you."

"Thanks for telling me about your past a bit Jason," I said. "Let me return the favor. You know a bit about Nico and I. Let me elaborate a little. Nico… for a long time he blamed me for letting his sister die." I closed my eyes. Even now, that day was as clear as when it happened. "Bianca sacrificed herself to save us all. I could have stopped it, but I let her go anyway. I had to tell Nico about it when I returned to camp. He… he wanted nothing to do with me." I knew I was tearing up, and I swiped at my eyes, willing the tears away. "I think he's moved passed that, but still. I think that's why he flipped out on me at the restaurant. Because I'd already broken a promise to him…"

"It wasn't your fault she died a noble death," Jason said, his eyes holding so much sympathy it hurt. "She chose that, and I don't think you could've stopped her had you wanted to. He has to learn to accept that, and in a way, I think he has." I wiped at my eyes again and smiled.

"Thanks for cheering me up Jason," I said. "Your one of the best friends I've ever had." Jason smiled at me as he climbed back onto the bank. I trailed him and willed myself dry.

"Same to you Percy," he said, toweling off and looking at me a little ruefully. "Same to you."

…

I didn't catch sight of Nico again, but perhaps that was good. I had to stomach what Jason said to me, and what I'd told him. I didn't talk about that part of mine and Nico's relationship much. It was a dark time for both of us. I thought I'd finally managed to shove it into the back of my mind, but as Jason told me about Leo, I felt compelled to tell him something, and that was the first thing to surface. It did make me wonder about what kind of future we could have together.

"Oh, my precious Prince of Shadows," I whispered as I gazed out of the window. It looked directly to Nico's cabin, where I saw he was getting dressed for bed. Blushing, I turned away. I felt like I was intruding on his privacy by watching him. "Anyway, where was I? Oh, yes. I really hope we have a future together. And I hope our past is really behind us, because I don't think I could live with myself if you still resented me for Bianca's death." I shut the curtains to try and get the shadow prince out of my head, which only served to put him in there more.

…

Nico's POV

…

I'm glad Percy and I made up. Don't get me wrong, Leo is great, but I really missed my Prince of the Sea. I missed cuddling with him the most, but I promised myself that I would do my best to stay in my own cabin. And of course that was easier said than done. I got up out of bed and looked out the window at Percy's cabin. Sighing, I pulled the curtains together. Hopefully, that got my mind off of him for a few hours.

…

Well, this was an interesting chapter indeed. You saw Jason and Percy's friendship growing, and Nico and Percy finally made up! That gives me much joy, as I hate to see these two fight, because they're so cute together (which makes me not like Annabeth more, lol).


	8. The Sleepover and Jason and Leo's Moment

If you haven't read House of Hades yet, don't read the rest of this, as it has spoilers, You have been warned. As I said, I am loving House of Hades. I can't believe in the book Nico actually had feelings for Percy. It just made the fangirl in me jump out and do a little dance around my living room. It was the highlight of my Christmas. Now these two are even more perfect for each other than ever!

…

Percy's POV

…

"Slumber party Prince! Slumber party!" Nico said, bouncing up and down. I smirked at his childish behavior. He seemed to sense he was overdoing it and stopped jumping, taking deep breaths and mouthing to ten. "I mean," he began once he was calm. "That you should come and spend the night in my cabin. I sleep in yours a bunch, and I'm lonely in that creepy cabin all by myself." I chuckled softly as Nico watched me with expectant eyes.

"Sure buddy," I replied. "I'll come over tonight. It sounds like fun." He jumped around a little again and ran off, most likely to find Leo. I'd gotten use to the fact that they were the best of friends right now, and that Leo's motives were purely of the helpful variety, rather than the I'm-going-to-steal-the-love-of-your-life variety. I'd never seen Nico more in control of his emotions, and so happy. He was even happier than when Oliver first took an interest in him. Speaking of that asshole, I hadn't seen him since the date, which was probably a good thing.

"Sounds like you're in for a fun night," Jason said, swooping down from some horseplay. It still amazed me that Jason had that kind of control over the wind. He rather enjoyed the time spent in the skies. He landed softly beside me. "I heard from up there. Nico sounded so excited. I bet it gets lonely in that big cabin, especially one as dreary looking as that." Without actually meaning to, he began to hover.

"Jason, quite being a showoff and get down before you hurt yourself," I said with a sigh. He came back down and crossed his arms, studying me. "Yes, I know he does. He's told me a hundred times at least. And he's never invited me over before. Is this good?" Jason shrugged.

"Dunno," he replied. "You're farther along on the relationship train than I am. Leo and I hardly talk anymore since he began hanging out with Nico."

"You should see if he wants to go to a movie with you or something," I said, and I saw him rolling the idea over. "Don't call it a date. Just say you want to hang out like you used to. That way, you guys can have some alone time." He grinned at me.

"Thanks a bunch," he said, flying off. I sighed. Show off son of Zeus.

…

"Mom, Nico asked if I'd sleep over in his cabin," I said. I'd Iris-messaged her to ask if I was doing the right thing by saying yes. It seemed suspicious to me that Nico suddenly wanted me in his cabin. Paul waved easily at me in the background, and I grinned. I liked my stepdad. He was cool. I waved back then looked at my mom again. "He's never asked me over before. I don't know if this is a good thing."

"It's good Percy," she said, smiling. I breathed out a huge sigh of relief. I'd never tell my mother this, but I _really _wanted to spend the night in Nico's cabin with just Nico. We'd had plenty of sleepovers in my cabin before, but somehow this one seemed more significant. It would be the first one since Nico's apparent interest in growing up. I smiled a little. I remembered the excitement rolling off him in waves as he asked if I would spend the night.

"That's good to hear mom," I said. "Because I missed having sleep overs with my little buddy. He's grown up in the last couple of weeks." I suddenly remembered mom didn't know about Nico's transformation. "Oh, you don't know that yet. Well, he's acting older. More is age, sometimes more so. I'm glad he's taking an interest in dropping his childish ways, but honestly, I don't want him to give it up entirely."

"Temper tantrums included?" my mom asked. I let out a short laugh and shook my head.

"No, I'm happy to see those go," I replied. "But his enthusiasm I'd like to keep. Which is part of the reason I said yes to this sleepover." The other part being so I could stare at Nico's abs, but there was no way in Hades I'd tell mom _that_. She'd come running to the camp and demand I come home so her precious little boy wouldn't be corrupted, or something like that.

"Have fun sweetie. Paul and I will be on call all night. We love you." I smiled at the mist as I cut the connection. Then I found my Waterland backpack and began putting in clothes, a sleeping bag, and other necessaries for tonight.

…

Nico's POV

…

"Percy is going to spend the night!" I exclaimed to Leo as we walked around in the woods. Every now and then a pile of bones appeared in front of me, showing how excited or nervous I was for tonight. "It's our first one since my date, and I'm excited. And nervous. Hey, how's yours and Jason's relationship going?" Leo sighed and kicked a stray rock away. I had a bad feeling.

"It's not really going anywhere," he replied, and he sounded a little choked up. I bet if I looked, I'd find traces of tears beginning to form in the corners of his eyes. Leo never cried, so he must be pretty broken up about this. "I don't know what to do anymore Nico. If he's by himself, he's either distracted or flying. And he's not normally by himself. That sea brat is with him." I let him have a neatly placed punch in the stomach. He doubled over and gasped for breath.

"Don't talk that way about Percy," I said. "I could say the same thing about that storm brat, but do I say that? No, I call him Jason. I expect you to do as such." Leo straightened up and grinned easily at me.

"Yes yes, sorry," he apologized. "Got a little carried away there. Anyway, I don't know how to approach Jason on dating me. I mean…why would he date me anyway? I'm just big, clumsy Leo." I flicker of doubt, I could see, was beginning to form. I patted his shoulder and brushed away some stray bones with my foot.

"Don't be silly Leo," I soothed. "I happen to know Jason thinks you're great. He thinks highly of you and I think you should just go and ask him out. Why not? What have you got to lose?" Leo perked and grinned at me again.

"Thanks for the advice Nico," he said, running off. "You're a pal." I rolled my eyes and laughed to the trees. At least he was happy.

…

I spent most of the afternoon picking up and tidying the cabin. I swept and dusted, then rearranged my few belongings on my dresser. Then I opened up every curtain on every window so there was as much light as possible coming in. Gods in Olympus, getting the cabin prepped for Percy's stay was a lot of work. After dinner, I ran back to make all the bunks (Leo and I destroyed their good looks during his last visit). I heard someone walking up the steps, and when I threw the door open, Percy grinned at me.

"Hiya Prince of Shadows," he greeted. I moved aside and motioned him in. He moved passed me and I saw him looking around. He whistled softly and turned to me. "Nice place you got here," he said, coming over and picking me up. "How long did it take you to clean up?"

"Awhile Prince," I replied, starting when I realized I'd used his nickname. I'd been trying really hard to call him Percy, but old habits die hard. "Sorry," I mumbled, looking at the ground (made harder by the fact that I wasn't on the floor right now). "I've been trying…"

"Don't you dare stop calling me Prince," he interrupted. "I love that nickname, okay? I love that you call me Prince. Please don't stop calling me it." I kept looking at the floor. Despite what he said, I was still kind of upset that I slipped up and called him that.

"It's just…" I began. Percy crashed out lips together, and I shut right up. I think he was just as surprised as I was because he fell over backward onto my bunk with me on top of him. We pulled away and stared at each other for a long time, neither of us daring to move. I jumped around inside. He kissed me! He really did kiss me! Just like I'd dreamed.

"Well, if that's all it takes to get you to shut up, I'll have to do that more often," he joked, but his eyes gave away how confused he still felt. He obviously didn't expect that kiss any more than I did, yet I think we were both happy he did it. I couldn't help it, I yawned. Percy immediately rolled onto his side and let me stretch out beside him. Once I was comfortable, his arms snaked around me and pulled me close. Once again, I fit perfectly in the curve his of body. That little fact made me drowsier, and before I knew it, I was out.

…

No one's POV

…

"Yes!" Jason whispered. Behind him, Leo pumped his fists in the air. They'd been watching through the window as Percy and Nico talked. Then they witnessed their first kiss. It looked so unexpected, and then both Percy and Nico curled up together and fell asleep, both still in their street clothes. But Jason suspected that they didn't really care.

"They kissed!" Leo whispered excitedly, dancing around. Jason laughed. Leo wasn't intentionally being cute, but watching the big boy dancing around lightly on his feet pleased Jason. It reminded him a little of Nico's enthusiasm (or at least what he was willing to show). "They've certainly come a long way," the bigger boy continued, stopping in his tracks and staring at Jason. "Are you watching me dance?" he asked, waggling his eyebrows. Jason flushed deep red and found something fascinating on the ground between his feet. "Oh my gods, you're embarrassed!" Leo exclaimed, clapping.

"Shhhh," Jason hissed. "You'll wake them up." He looked up and jerked a thumb at the Hades cabin. He led the bigger boy away from the cabin. They crouched behind the Aphrodite cabin, and Jason continued to watch Leo. "Alright, yes, I was watching you. I've never seen you act that light on your feet before. I was just watching you have fun. Hanging with Nico has done wonders for you it seems." Leo heard the bitterness in Jason's voice when he said the shadow prince's name.

"It has," Leo said, gently taking Jason's hand in his. "He's been coaching me in addition to his own studies. He's taught me to be lighter on my feet as well. I'm not as clumsy as I used to be." He smiled easily at that. "Say, why don't we go somewhere? Like, the movies or something. It'll be fun. Just like old times sake." Jason threw back his head and laughed softly. It was late after all.

"Sounds great Leo," he said, moving and hugging the bigger boy. "Friday, okay? Promise you won't forget?" Leo smiled and held out his hand, pinky extended.

"Pinky promise," he replied, kissing Jason's forehead as the storm lord's son wrapped his own around the blacksmith god son's.

"Pinky promise," he echoed with a smile, finally figuring out that Nico did pinky promises too.

…

Okay, so for the next chapter, I want to get away from Percy and Nico for a while. The next chapter will be Jason and Leo's date on Friday. Then after that it'll just randomly go back and forth between the couples. But mostly it'll be Percy and Nico. But we have to have updates on Jason and Leo, right?

Okay, fangirl moment. They kissed they kissed they kissed! Okay, fangirl moment done. See you next chapter.


	9. Jason and Leo's Date

Okay so as I said, this chapter is going to be Jason and Leo's date. Percy and Nico will still be here but this'll be Jason and Leo's POV. Have fun! But first *jumps around bedroom and squeals* Percy was the person Nico cared about most! Ha, take that Annabeth! *stops jumping* k, all done.

…

Jason's POV

…

"Percy, I'm so nervous!" I exclaimed as I rushed around the cabin. He rolled his eyes to the heavens and laced his fingers through Nico's. Ever since Friday they'd been inseparable. And that was in a good way. They'd gained more confidence in both their relationship and themselves. Percy confided in me yesterday (Wednesday) that he finally told Annabeth and his other friend, Grover, about his sexual preferences. He said it felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

"You'll be fine Jason," Percy said. I turned to look at him and was surprised to instead see Nico staring at me. He'd crawled onto Percy's lap and was watching me rush around.

"Woah little buddy, you gave me a scare," I said with a laugh. He didn't so much as crack a smile. I frowned. Nico I never really got, and I'd never tell Percy this, but Nico gave me the creeps sometimes.

"C'mon Prince of Shadows, smile," Percy said, tickling his sides. Instantly his frown disappeared and he giggled, twisting away from the sea god's son. "That's better," Percy said with a grin to him. He then turned to me. "It's just a simple outing to the movies Jason. There's no need to be worried. You'll be fine. I heard from a little birdie you guys had a moment behind the Aphrodite cabin." I felt color rising on my cheeks.

"Yes," I mumbled. "We did." Nico's smile left and he frowned at me again. I had to wonder what his problem was. Without thinking about it, I rounded on him. "What?" I snapped. He stood without flinching, and I was surprised. A few weeks ago if I'd have done that, he would've gone running to Percy. But now he stood firm and calm.

"I don't know what to make of you Jason," he said, once again surprising me. "You act all cool and confident around everyone, but Leo, your best friend and long-time companion and possible lover." I flushed and even brighter red but bit my tongue all the same. "He reduces you to a pile of mush." He eyed me up and down, and I had a feeling he wasn't just looking at the physical me. "Why are you so afraid? What could go wrong?"

"What could go wrong?" I spat. "He can say after today he doesn't want to hang out anymore. He could say he doesn't want to be my best friend. He could say he doesn't love me that way…" I sank down onto my bunk and buried my head in my hands. "Happy now?" I asked him, and some of the fight seemed to leave his lithe little body. "That's what I'm scared of. I'm scared of Leo not loving me. I'm scared he will never love me that way." Nico laughed, but it wasn't a cruel laugh. It was one that threw me off.

"Leo's crazy about you!" he exclaimed, clutching his sides. He was doubled over with laughter. "You're scared he won't love you when he already does! You're worried about nothing." I don't think I heard him right.

"He already loves me?" I asked in disbelief.

"Yes," Nico said, straightening. "He's nuts about you. He talks about you all the time, he's trying new things to get your attention, and you've been so busy with Percy you haven't given him the time of day until last week!" He yelled that last part, getting right in my face. I backed up quickly, my eyes widening. Percy ran over to Nico, pulling him away.

"Don't get worked up sweetie," Percy said, smoothing his hair down. "You're going to make skeletal warriors appear again." Nico took some deep breaths while I tried to get my heart rate down. For a peaceful guy he sure was scary sometimes. And what was with that again? I knew Percy and Nico had been here longer than I had, but had the little guy really made some appear before? Freakish son of Hades. I shuddered and smoothed down my Camp Half-Blood shirt. "As for you Jason, all this prep isn't necessary. It's not a date, is it?" I shook my head and then tilted it to the side, watching as Percy sat down and loped one arm around Nico's waist, subtly pinning him to the bed. "Then just shower and put on fresh clothes. And don't go fancy, fancy. He won't. And don't be scared. Leo loves you." Smiling, I retrieved fresh clothes from inside one of the drawers and disappeared into the bathroom.

"You can leave now," I called over my shoulder as I turned on the water and began to undress. "I got this." I heard the sounds of shuffling feet and then the door clicking softly shut.

…

Leo's POV

…

My hand kept catching fire. Groaning, I put it out for the hundredth time then went back to pacing my cabin. I was waiting for Nico and Percy to arrive. He'd promised me he'd come with his, I wasn't sure what to call Percy, so friend, when they got done talking to Jason. The best part of having Nico as a friend was he could just kind of flit back and forth and not seem suspicious.

"Hi." I yelped and jumped, whirling around. Percy and Nico stepped out of the shadows in the corner of the room. "Shadow travel is fun," Nico said, and as I watched Percy he slowly sank down onto his knees. I pointed at him and looked at Nico questioningly. "Oh, he'll be fine," he said, crouching and kissing his cheek.

"The next time we go canoeing, I'm pushing you out," Percy replied to that, standing up on shaky legs. But I saw the amusement in his eyes and knew it was an empty threat. Gods, I hoped any relationship I had in the future with Jason could be like this. Easy and fun and true.

"That's all very well," I said sarcastically, and they both turned to look at me. "I have a problem." I held up my hand, which was now on fire. I casually put it on and stuffed it in my pocket. "I'm all nerves. What if this goes bad? What if…" I trailed off, pacing again. Nico went to say something, but Percy placed a hand on his shoulder. They seemed to have some sort of silent argument. Percy must have won because Nico sat down on one of my sibling's beds (thank goodness they were all somewhere else) and Percy came over to me, grabbing my shoulders and stopping me from moving.

"Jason loves you," he said simply. I blinked and went to speak, but he held up his hand. "Don't say anything. Just listen. We were just with him." At _we_ Nico came over and cuddled up against Percy, who absent-mindedly wrapped one arm around him. "He's scared you won't love him back the same way he loves you. But he loves you. A lot. Convince him you love him too without being obvious, okay?" I nodded and my eyes widened. So Jason did love me after all. When Percy backed away, I jumped around a little.

"I taught him that," Nico said with a smirk. I just shrugged. Tonight was going to be extra fun after all. Now all I needed to do was let Jason knew I loved him.

…

Jason's POV

…

"That was a good movie," Leo said to me as we stood outside the theatre. Truthfully, I hadn't paid much attention to the movie. Half way through, Leo rested his hand on top of mine and kept it there, and I was still marveling at how soft his hands actually felt. "Earth to Jason!" Leo waved his hand in front of my face and I watched it with my eyes. "Yep, you've lost it," he said with a laugh. He began to wander down the street and I scurried after him.

"Where are we going?" I asked just as he went into the coffee shop where Percy and I had our second "date". I gulped. I didn't really want to go in there because it seemed to be the coffee shop of friendships, but when Leo ordered two cups of coffee, I had no choice but to go inside. I sat opposite of him at a table and accepted a cup from him. I took a sip, expecting to taste the bitterness of coffee, but was surprised instead by the sweetness of hot chocolate. "It's hot chocolate," I said lamely. Leo chuckled and nodded.

"I know you don't like coffee so I got you hot chocolate," he said, then frowned. "That's okay, right?" Grinning, I took another sip.

"It's perfect," I said. "I can't believe you remembered I didn't like coffee. I think I told you that once on a brief trip into the city like five months ago." Leo shrugged and looked down, fingering the lid of his cup. I reached across the table and took his hand in mine. "How much have you remembered about me?" I asked him. "You don't need to tell me everything."

"A lot," he whispered. "I remembered the coffee thing. I also know you feel the freest when you're soaring around on the currents, because as you say, the sky's the limit." I felt like I was trying to swallow a golf ball. "Jason I…" He trailed off, looking unsure of himself. I gently squeezed his hand, urging him to continue. "I love you Jason," he whispered, then took a drink of coffee, flaring as red as the fire he could summon.

"I love you too, Leo," I replied, and he jerked up, blinking at me in surprise. I laughed out loud and moved around the table. I sat beside him and gave him a kiss, which he eagerly returned. "Promise you love me?" I asked when he pulled away.

"Pinky promise," he said with a laugh. "Let's do this again," he added, kissing my forehead. "As a real date though. I'd like a real date with you Jason Grace."

"So would I Leo Valdez," I replied. "And now we are officially a couple." And then we both got the biggest surprise of the night when everyone in the coffee shop cheered.

…

Jason and Leo's date went well! And now they're a couple! Ahhhh! Fangirl moment fangirl moment lol. Anyway, next chapter will be back to Percy and Nico. Have a nice night!


	10. Confessions at Midnight (roughly)

I'm loving my new picture. It kind of gave me the idea for the story (the rest of the story is supplied by a combination of my own thinking and 's ideas). I'm also enjoying this story a lot, and am grateful for all the favorites, follows, and reviews. You guys rock! Sorry if this sucks but it's close to two in the morning. You try writing a good story at two in the morning.

…

Percy's POV

…

Nico's lips were soft. That was the first though I had every time we kissed. He surprised me by quickly taking control of our every kiss, making me wonder if he'd done this before. And every time I ended it before he deemed fit, I saw the disappointment. Then I'd chuckle and smooth down his hair.

"Will you two knock it off," Annabeth said in exasperation. "You've been sucking face for the entire meal. We get it, you're a couple now. I would like to finish my dinner in piece." Nico broke our longest kiss so far and pouted at Annabeth, sliding to sit next to her.

"But princess," he pouted, and I knew he was going to try and soften her up. "I like to kiss him." His eyes teared up. "You don't really want me to stop, do you?" She continued to gaze at him coolly, and I laughed at her immunity to Nico's charms. Had it been me, I would've been putty in his hands by now. I wrapped one arm around his waist and pulled him back, and he cuddled up against me. For being the son of the undead god, he sure was warm.

"What a beautiful boy," I cooed softly, and Nico beamed up at me. I would never tire of that wonderful smile of his, and he knew it. He crawled onto my lap and began stealing the pepperonis off my pizza. "Hey, what do you think you're doing mister?" I scolded gently as he plucked the last one off. "That is my pepperoni pizza. Not yours." He laughed and stuffed in his mouth before I could take it back.

"A little payback for you not paying attention," Annabeth said. When I looked at her, she was completely straight faced. How she did it, I wasn't sure. "Percy, he's got the rest of your pizza." I turned back in time to watch Nico wolf down the rest of my slice. Sighing, I pushed the plate away.

"What did we miss?" Jason asked, sliding in beside Annabeth. She rolled her eyes and grumbled something about testosterone, then picked up her plate and left. I watched her go. Leo slid in beside his boyfriend and wrapped one arm around him, mirroring what Nico and I had done just a few minutes ago. Jason was slightly smaller than Leo, which made their current position all the better.

"Oh, Nico and I were just giving Annabeth a headache with all our affection," I said, nuzzling the back of Nico's neck. He giggled and stole grapes from Leo's plate. Leo just looked at him with a smile on his face. "And now you've moved on to stealing Leo's food," I said to him, tickling his sides. "Is my food not enough for you?" He giggled as he popped grapes into his mouth.

"I can see why," Jason replied. "You two are adorable together. It's like you've been a couple your entire lives. Are there any obstacles yet?" Nico and I exchanged a look. I wasn't exactly sure. But suddenly it came to me.

"Bianca," I whispered. I noticed Nico's eyes instantly clouded with pain. "Nico, we have to talk about Bianca," I said, turning him around to face me. He set down his fistful of grapes and sighed.

"I don't blame you anymore Percy," he said softly. I noticed Jason and Leo looked vaguely uncomfortable, but I was glad they were there. It gave me a strange sort of comfort. "She died saving everybody. Knowing my sister, that would be all she wanted." He sighed and rested his head on my chest, closing his eyes. Before I knew it, he was out. Leo chuckled softly, and Jason grinned.

"Long day of battle training, huh buddy?" I said to him softly, holding him closer. "Long day of Greek reading practice tomorrow." Leo made a face at that.

"Ugh, I have to do that too," he said, pulling out his book. "I get we're wired for Greek, but it still looks…" He trailed off, looking a little embarrassed. Jason twined their fingers together and rubbed circles on his palm.

"Foreign?" he gently prompted. Leo nodded and flipped open to the page they were on, mouthing the words as he read. I stood up and shifted Nico so he was easier to carry. "Gonna take him to his cabin?" Jason asked without looking at me. He was busy reading the book over Leo's shoulder. I chuckled lowly. They would both soon be engrossed in the work that went with reading Greek.

"Nope, he's sleeping in my cabin tonight," I said. Neither of them were paying any attention to me, so I decided to have a little fun. "Then I'm going to tie him up, undress him, and fuck him all night long." Jason blinked and looked up at me.

"What?" he asked. I laughed and shook my head.

"Nothing," I said. "It might be supper time, but I'm going to go get settled in for the night. See you in the morning." Jason and Leo waved at me shortly before returning to the book. I rolled my eyes and carefully carried Nico to my cabin. He mumbled in his sleep from time to time, and he fisted my shirt in his sleep. He was adorable. When I got to my cabin, I gently laid him on my bunk. I felt a little funny doing this, but I gently removed his jeans and jacket, leaving him in his navy blue t-shirt. I shed my own jeans and climbed in beside him, pulling him close.

"Fucking," he mumbled. My eyes flew open wide and I put a finger to his lips.

"No my precious Prince of Shadows," I said, rubbing circles on his back and twining our legs. "No fucking. I just said that to mess with our friends a bit. Sleep tight buddy." I snuggled up against him, then moved him so he was on top of me. I covered us both with my blanket and was lulled to sleep by a combination of warmth and Nico's gentle breathing.

…

Nico's POV

…

I blinked my eyes open and found myself in the Poseidon cabin. I was pretty sure the last place I remember being was at the dinner table. I shifted, and under me, Percy mumbled something unintelligent in his sleep. I stopped moving, and his arm snaked around my waist. I wiggled around and tried to wake him up.

"Percy, I have to go," I whined, and without waking up, he moved his arm. I carefully got out of bed and ran to the bathroom.

"Nico!" I heard my name being hissed from the other side of the door. I crept close and opened it a crack, peeking out. It was Percy. "There you are buddy. I was just wondering where you went." He made his way back to the bed, and I was surprised to see he hand no pants on. Although his dark red boxers looked great on him. I stared at myself in the mirror. My navy shirt was becoming tight on me (most likely from muscles), and I was enjoying the new bulk. Leo and I would have to hit the town again. "Are you coming back to bed?" Percy called. "Or are you staring at yourself in the mirror without me?" His sleepy voice was seriously the sexiest thing I heard. I've never really been awake to hear it before.

"I'm admiring what you can't see," I called back in a teasing voice.

"Nico di Angelo, you'd better get that cute ass in here, or I'm going to throw you in the lake." I think I was going to melt if he kept talking to me in that sleepy voice of his. I wanted him to keep talking to me.

"Oh, you wouldn't throw your Prince of Shadows in the lake, would you Prince?" I said cheekily. "I'm your precious boy." The door banged open, surprising me.

"Nope, but I don't mind invading your privacy," he said, picking me up and carrying me back to bed. He laid down and let me curl up next to him. I yawned, but right now I felt charged. "You still up sweetie?" he asked, toying with my hair. That felt incredible.

"Yeah," I replied. "I feel like I've just slept eight hours, but it's the middle of the night." I looked out the window at the half moon. "How come you brought me here?" While Percy thought about it, I listened to the gently gurgle of the salt water fountain in the corner. It was a beautiful fountain.

"I just figured we could be in here tonight," he replied, pulling me closer to him. "We spent the night in your cabin recently, so I figured we could have a slumber party here. Great, now I'm awake." He released me and sat up, resting against the wall. "What do you want to do now?" I shrugged. I'd planned on sleeping this late at night.

"Just talk," I said. "What's your favorite thing? Your most prized possession?"

"That's easy," he replied, grinning. "My favorite thing in the world is you, my Prince of Shadows. You're my favorite thing in the whole world." He cupped his hands under my chin. "You're all I think about during the day and at night. You're the love of my life Nico. You always have been and you always will."

"I… I don't know what to say," I replied quietly. Percy laughed and began showering me with kisses. "Stop, stop!" I gasped, laughing. "Uncle, uncle!" Percy smiled and sat back, leaning against the wall again.

"Don't say anything then," he replied, yawning. "You've done a lot of growing up recently Nico. I'm really proud of you, my precious Prince of Shadows," I glowed at his praise. It was so unexpected. "Tell you what, I'll say this for right now, and if you want to tell me you love me, you can do it when you're ready, Okay? In the meantime…" He laid down and laced his fingers behind his head. I laid beside him and rested my head on his chest. I began to drift off, but before I fell completely asleep, I heard, "I love you Nico." I kept myself awake until Percy was asleep, then I scooted up and kissed his cheek.

"I love you too Percy," I whispered, then scooted down and fell asleep with a smile on my face.

…

Enjoy the sweet moments as they come! The next chapter about these two won't be as friendly, I pinky promise. Lol, anyway, I'm thinking of the next chapter being Jason and Leo spending the night in Jason's cabin (since he's the only son of Zeus). That should be fun. See you next chapter and I hope you're liking the story (and Nico's transformation) thus far.


	11. Sleepover in the Zeus Cabin

Okay, so this chapter is another Jason/Leo centric one, and will be about the first time they spend the night together (in Jason's cabin of course, so they have privacy). Can I just say I like Jason a lot better in the HoH. Because he defends Nico, and hardly anyone defends Nico. Also, I'm loving owning Sea of Monsters. Got it for Christmas :D

…

Jason's POV

…

"Why'd we agree to meet you here?" I asked as I shed my shirt and waded in after Percy. Percy, Nico, Leo, Annabeth, Piper, and I were all spending the afternoon at the creek. Piper and Annabeth sat down at the edge and let the water run over their feet. Nico was busy tossing a Frisbee back and forth with Leo. Which left Percy and I to swim.

"Because I lured you here with a picnic," Percy replied, pointing the big basket of food on the shore. Leo looked over, caught my eye, and grinned. "And you love food." He said it so matter-of-factly. I looked over and saw the smirk playing on his lips. I huffed and tried to think of a good comeback. I noticed out of the corner of my eye Nico jumping and missing the Frisbee. I concentrated and sent it back to him.

"Thanks Jason!" he called, catching it and throwing it back to Leo. I saw Percy smiling and Annabeth and Piper clapped. I flushed red. No one really appreciated my powers before. "Percy! Percy!" Nico called, plunging into the water and swimming to where we were. He climbed onto Percy's back and rested his head on top of Percy's, watching everyone.

"Hi sweetie," Percy said. "Glad to see you out swimming." I looked back to shore and found Annabeth and Piper deep in conversation and Leo slowly discarding his shirt. My heart fluttered in my chest. That meant that he was coming in after us. "Hey girls!" Percy called. "Come on in, the water's great!" He then proceeded to use his freaky powers to douse the girls with water. Sputtering, they dove in after us. "Hang on buddy," Percy said as he dove under water with Nico still hanging on his back. Leo finally swam to my side.

"What a perfect afternoon," he said, smiling lazily. "You know what would end this day even better?" I looked at him curiously. "If we spent the night together, at your place," he added hastily. "Not that my siblings would mind you in my cabin. I'd just rather we have some privacy." I watched as Piper caught up to Percy. She ripped Nico off his back and they began to wrestle in the water. Nico clung to Annabeth as they watched the two battle. "Earth to Jason?" Leo whispered, pressing his lips to my ear.

"That sounds great Leo," I said, though I felt like I was trying to swallow a golf ball. "Now let's go pull Piper off Percy before she hurts him and Nico makes a bunch of vicious skeletal warriors appear."

…

It was dinner, and we were still at the creek, eating sandwiches out of the basket and drinking lemonade. Nico and Percy had their own blanket, as did Leo and I. Annabeth and Piper shared another. We'd all changed into dry clothes (taking turns disappearing behind a bush one at a time while the others dripped on the sandy shore). Now we were enjoying some down time. It was a lazy Saturday indeed.

"How'd it Greek reading go Leo?" Nico asked as he swallowed the last of his peanut butter and jelly. Leo made a face and took another ham sandwich out of the basket. Leo had the appetite of a starving man. I rested my head in his lap and handed him my crusts, which he took from me gratefully.

"I don't think I'll ever get Greek," he said with a sigh. "I need a tutor." Percy snorted.

"Annabeth's the best tutor in camp," he said, motioning to her. He stretched out on the blanket and Nico laid his head on his chest. Percy began lazily running his fingers through the smaller boy's hair. "If she can't teach you Greek, no one can." Annabeth grinned at Leo.

"Come by the Athena cabin tomorrow at two and I'll give you a hand," she replied, standing up and stretching. "Wanna go for a walk with me Piper?" Nodding, Piper stood and followed her into the woods, leaving Leo, Percy, Nico, and myself to watch the blankets and food.

"This had been great!" Nico said with his usual bubbliness. I was getting used to the fact he smiled more often now. Ever since he and Percy officially became a couple, he'd been even bubblier than before. "Can we do this again Prince?" He turned to look at Percy, who laughed and nodded. "Yay,  
Nico exclaimed, looking at the sky. The sun was beginning to set, and the sky was a nice pink/orange color. It was beautiful. Sighing contently, I rolled onto my back and stared up at the sky.

"Whatcha thinking about." Leo asked, smoothing my hair down.

"How beautiful this time of day is," I replied. I wasn't ashamed to admit how I liked the wonders of nature. "And about tonight," I added with a knowing look to Leo. He laughed and nodded. "It should be fun," I said, forcing a smile. It felt completely fake, but I didn't want him to know how nervous and scared I was.

"We should head back," Percy said, standing. Nico made a noise of complaint at the sudden movement, and Percy picked him up. "Okay grouchy I'll carry you back," he said, although he didn't look mad about it. He looked amused, like Nico's little antics made him want to laugh. "Jason, if you'll grab the basket, and Leo, you grab the blankets, that'll be a big help." We did as we asked, and we followed Percy back to the cabins. He took Nico to the Hades cabin and Leo and I dropped the basket and blankets off at his cabin.

"I'm going to go get my stuff," Leo said once we were finished. "I'll be over afterwards." He ran to his cabin and I ran to mine, slamming the door shut. I finally breathed out and quickly changed into pajamas. It was basically green pajama pants with blue stars on them and a loose white t-shirt. I went into my bathroom and splashed cold water on my face. "Jason, you here?" Leo called, letting himself in.

"In the bathroom," I called back. Just getting ready for bed." That was also a lie. Really, I was steeling my nerves to go out there. We'd never spent the night together before, and I was scared that something would go wrong. Finally, I worked up enough nerve to go out. I found Leo lounging on my bed with a book spread in front of him, most likely a book a plans for Bunker 9.

"There you are," he said without looking up. I perched on the edge of the bed and stared at his book. It didn't look like blueprints. It looked like… "Wanna tell me why you're looking at my journal," he gently teased, closing the book.

"I thought it was your plans for Bunker 9," I protested, flaring red. "I didn't know you had a journal." He put it back in his backpack and laughed, wrapping me in a hug.

"It's okay," he said. "I'm not blaming you." He yawned and rubbed his eyes, moving to his sleeping bag spread out on the floor. I peered at him over the side of my bunk as I laid down myself. He laced his fingers behind his head and stared up at my ceiling. I copied him, instead staring at the other bunk. "You still awake?" he whispered. "I can't sleep."

"I'm still awake," I replied with a sigh. "I can't sleep either. I feel too worked up. It must still be from this afternoon," I added quickly, though my heart was racing right now. "Leo?" I asked, looking down at him. "Do you…do you think we made the right decision?" He propped himself up on his elbow and looked at me.

"What do you mean?" he asked. I sighed.

"I mean, did we do the right thing agreeing to go out with each other? I feel strongly about you, don't worry, but…are we really ready for a relationship." My bunk creaked as Leo crawled in beside me and held me close. I hadn't realized I was shaking until he began shushing me.

"Don't shake Jason, it's okay," he soothed. "To answer you, yes, I think we made the right decision. We're ready Jason. I am anyway. If you aren't ready, we can…"

"I am ready!" I interrupted. "It's just…tonight filled me with dread. This is the first night we've spent together since we officially began going out. I hoped it would go well. That we wouldn't find we aren't as compatible as we thought. That maybe we weren't really ready to be together after all." My lower lips began to tremble. I never once doubted myself before, so this was new.

"Jason, I love you. That's all that matters. No matter what, I'll continue to love you, through all the fights and hardships. I've already loved you through them. There's nothing we'll go through to make me stop loving you. And you're not going to get rid of me that easily." He chuckled at that while he toyed with my hair. "Now how about you get some sleep? It's been a taxing day." When he told me to get some sleep, my eyelids grew heavy. I snuggled against him and closed my eyes.

"I love you Leo," I said just before I fell asleep. "Thank you." I fisted his shirt and was out before I knew it.

…

Percy's POV

…

"They're so cute together," Nico gushed to me as we watched through the window. I watched as Leo crawled in with Jason and embraced him, calming the shaking boy and lulling him to sleep. It was certainly adorable. I'd caught wind of their plans as Annabeth and Piper chased me around the creek.

"Yes they are sweetie," I replied, taking his hand in mine. "Let's go get some sleep."

…

Percy and Nico are going to fight next chapter. Sorry, but it can't be all rainbows and lollipops.


	12. The Fight

I feel so bad for Nico in the book! He does belong, he just chooses to not let anyone get close to him. Jason is willing to be his friend if he's just get passed his own self-pity… okay I'm all done ranting. Enjoy the new chapter. Be prepared for a fight.

…

Nico's POV

…

I knew something was wrong as soon as I arrived for breakfast. Percy sat with his shoulders hunched, staring at his hands. He had no food in front of him. Concerned, I made my way over to him, sitting next to him and cuddling up against him.

"What's wrong Prince?" I asked. He rounded on me, his eyes blazing. "Wha?" I scooted away from him, my eyes widening. In all the time I've known him, Percy has never gotten mad at me, so seeing the fury in his eyes surprised me. "Prince?" I asked hesitantly. He got right in my face, thrusting a piece of paper at me, and it turned my blood to ice. It was a drawing of me standing over Percy, making him suffer for letting Bianca get killed. "Percy, I can explain…" I began.

"Don't Nico," he growled, and once again I was surprised by the fury in him. He practically shook with it. "You don't blame me anymore? What the fuck is this then? This wouldn't be your revenge would it?" His eyes clouded with pain. "I can live with the drawing Nico," he said, his voice going suddenly calm. "What I can't live is you lied to me. You lied right to my face."

"What in Hades did you want me to say?" I snapped back. I was aware of people staring at us now, but I didn't care. "'Oh, you let my sister get killed, but I don't blame you even though it only recently happened?' How the fuck do you expect me to not forget about that." Percy took a deep breath, and I was aware of the sudden wave of calm.

"First off, don't swear," he said. "You're only thirteen. Don't you dare say you're older!" he added loudly when I opened my mouth to speak. "You know what? I think we're done here. With Bianca. With our relationship. Goodbye Nico. It was nice while it lasted." Sarcasm dripped like icicles from his voice, and this time he really shook from fury. "Have a nice life Nico." He stormed off, and everyone in the pavilion watched him leave. Instead of the anger I expected, I only felt a great wave of sadness. I didn't want to fight with my Prince of the Sea.

"Percy…" I called hoarsely, getting up and stumbling, sinking down to my knees. "Percy…please wait…" I called weakly. Jason and Leo came running. Leo hauled me to my feet and Jason checked me over.

"Are you okay?" the blonde boy asked, concern written all over his face. Mutely, I shook my head. I never got to tell Percy it was an old drawing, and the lashes I'd said today were only a reaction to his accusations.

…

"Nico," Jason said softly. My bed creaked as he sat down carefully on the edge. "Hey it's going to be okay." I'd spent the rest of the day in my cabin, cuddling with the shirt Percy accidently left during his last stay. It still smelled of the sea and cinnamon (I still wouldn't ask). So basically, it smelled like him. I cried into it from time to time, letting my tears soak the orange fabric.

"Nico, skeletons are popping up all over the place," Leo added unhelpfully. "Half the camp is busy fighting them off. And they don't die easy." That only served to make me more upset, and I began to sob into my pillow. "Oh," Leo mumbled.

"You imbecile," Jason said. "You aren't helping." Leo snorted and wandered over.

"I don't see you coming up with any more bright ideas, you self-absorbed thundercloud," he snapped back. Jason lunged at him and they began to wrestle on my floor, one or the other occasionally throwing in a punch.

"Knock it off!" I yelled so loud they both froze mid-punch. They stared at me in surprise. "You don't need to fight, so knock it off! You two love each other, not hate. You shouldn't be fucking fighting, you should be loving each other!" Even as I said it, all the fight left me and I plopped back down onto my pillow. "If you're going to fight, leave me alone." I looked back over at them as they both helped each other off the floor. Leo took his shirt off and pressed it to the cut above Jason's eye.

"Sorry Nico," he mumbled as he relinquished possession of the shirt to Jason. "I guess we can't take the stress of you guys fighting. He's right though," he said, pressing kisses to Jason's neck. "We don't need to fight. Sorry."

"I shouldn't have called you an imbecile," Jason said, casting his eyes downward, looking ashamed. "Sorry." I rolled onto my side to watch them make up.

"Why can't we do that?" I asked them, and they both turned to look at me. "Why can't Percy and I make up like that? I've never seen him madder at me before. Actually, it's the first time I've ever seen him mad at me. I don't like it." I hugged his shirt to my chest and Leo came over. He and Jason sat side by side on my bed. I crawled onto Jason's lap, which both he and Leo looked surprised about.

"It'll be okay Nico," he said. "Just give him some time to think things through."

…

Percy's POV

…

I wasn't even really mad.

Okay, I know that sounds awful after the fight with Nico (which I was beginning to really regret) but I only acted out of surprise. I'd found the drawing while Nico was falling asleep. To say the least, it was a little disturbing. But it made me question whether or not he really didn't blame me for her death. I beat myself up about it enough as it was. It ate at me all night, making it hard to sleep, and at breakfast my suspicions were confirmed when I confronted him about it. At the time, I was furious at him for lying to me.

"Percy, we need your help battling the skeletons!" Leo called as he ran by my cabin. I peeked out and saw half the camp battling skeletal warriors on the volleyball court. I took Riptide out of my pocket and it sprang to life. I slashed through one climbing my stairs and it just looked at me. I found the kink and it flashed away in a cloud of black dust.

"Where are they all coming from?" I yelled to no one in particular, jumping off the small porch and battling more while simultaneously ducking under a swinging baton.

"Nico is summoning them!" Annabeth yelled back, stabbing at a pack of baddies with her bronze knife. At the mention of my little Prince of Shadows, I felt my stomach heave and I momentarily froze. One of the skeletons knocked Riptide out of my hands and the sword went clattering away. I would've become flattened if Jason hadn't come zooming out of nowhere and bashed the skeleton on the head with the butt of his sword.

"Careful!" he said, flying off to help a small crowd of campers being surrounded in a tidal wave of baddies. No matter how many we killed, more seemed to take their place. "Go talk to Nico!" Jason yelled as he once again flew by. I rolled to the side and came up on one knee, driving my sword though one of the warrior's ribs.

"He lied to me!" I called back. "He lied right to my face about Bianca. He still blames me." Jason landed in front of me, his normally cheerful, friendly eyes blazing. In one fluid motion, he flicked the sword up and around, catching me in the chest with the flat and sending me sprawling.

"That's for being an idiot," he said, quickly reversing the sword and stabbing backwards. Another skeleton disappeared in a _poof_ of black. "That was an old drawing, if you would've let him explain. He was caught off guard and was reacting to what you were accusing him of. He doesn't blame you, and he's torn up about your fight." Without looking, he ducked as a baton sailed overhead. Suddenly it was knocked aside by a flying melon. He chuckled softly as Piper ran off, blasting more fruit at supersonic speed.

"How do you know?" I asked, getting to my feet and brushing the dust off myself. Jason rolled his eyes.

"Leo and I talked to him before this stupid battle of the skeletons began," he responded. Leo, who'd been running passed, stopped when he heard his name. Buford the magical table kept on going passed him, bumping into skeletons and basically causing trouble. Leo grinned at his friend and turned back to us. "He's in the Hades cabin cuddling with your shirt and sobbing his eyes out, which I'm pretty sure is what's causing these skeletons to pop up all over the place. I don't think I heard Jason right.

"He's cuddling with my shirt?" I asked in disbelief. I didn't… Oh. One of my Camp Half-Blood shirts. I must have left it there when I spent the night last. "I didn't know he still had it…" I said quietly. Leo reached around me and pushed a skeleton back from us with a spear (I didn't know he fought with one).

"He's devastated," Leo agreed grimly. "He won't really let us talk to him, and what we do say just won't cheer him up. He misses you so much he crawled onto Jason's lap and cried." Jason shot Leo a look, making me wonder how much Jason actually liked that. "You need to talk to him. You need to make this better. Get your ass in there, or I'm going to make you a Percy-ka-bob." I've never seen Leo angry, so I obeyed, because I had no doubt he'd harm me if I didn't do what he said. I scrambled up the steps to the Hades cabin and rapped gently.

"What?" Nico called from inside. "Leo, if that's you again, I'm going to send you to my…" The door was thrown open and Nico stood there, mouth agape. "Percy?" I saw the flash of relief before it was replaced with cold indifference. "What do you want?" I swept him up into my arms, hugging him to my chest. "Oomph, you're crushing me Prince… I mean Percy."

"No, no Prince," I said quickly. "I'm so sorry I wouldn't let you explain at breakfast. I was just… I was mad to think you could lie to my face. You weren't though, were you?" He shook his head, his hair flipping out of his eyes as he did so, and I saw they were rimmed with red. "Oh sweetie…" I mumbled. Jason stumbled up the stairs, sweat beading on his forehead and dripping down his face.

"They skeletons have stopped coming," he said, slumping against the wall. He looked exhausted. Leo fumbled up the stairs after him, collapsing on the porch. They both looked exhausted. "Leo," Jason whispered, crouching beside him.

"I did that?" Nico asked me, forgetting we were supposed to be fighting. His face was grim, once again reminding me of the old Nico. "Sorry guys. I guess I don't know my own powers well enough yet." Jason waved his arm and helped Leo to his feet.

"I'm just glad you guys made up," he replied as he slumped against the wall of the cabin again. "Glad to see you two back together again. When you aren't fighting, you're one of the cutest couples in camp." Nico's face contorted in pain and Jason looked up, sensing he said the wrong thing. "You are a couple again, right?" he asked. Even Leo dropped the usual smile in favor of a frown as he watched us. Beside me, Nico shifted weight uncomfortably.

"Not exactly," I responded, watching Nico out of the corner of my eyes. His shoulders drooped and his eyes dropped to look at the porch. I saw tears in his eyes. "But I want us back together," I added, speaking more to Nico than to anyone else. "Nico, please forgive me stupid and rash behavior. Please say you'll date me again." He looked up, and the pain I saw seemed to leave him.

"How could I say no?" he asked, and I was so grateful, I crashed my lips to his.

…

Yay, they made up! That was a really nasty one though. See you next chap.


	13. Cinnamon Shopping Trip

Sorry I haven't updated yet today. I felt kind of bad for not updating my Percabeth (although not that bad considering what he does to Nico) so I posted two chapters on it (if you want to check it out it's called Never Again). Merry Christmas to them I guess. Now I'm here to update my Percico. Have fun with it!

…

Nico's POV

…

I woke to the scent of cinnamon, which was strange because his shirt that I practically stole had already lost the scent of him, and I don't remember him sleeping here last night. I blinked awake and found him sitting on the edge of my bunk, folding laundry. The sight was so strange I laughed and rolled onto my side, wrapping my arms around his waist.

"Morning sleepyhead," Percy said without looking, although I could hear the smile in his voice. He retrieved his shirt I'd been using as a pillow. I couldn't help it, I gave a little whimper of protest. "It's okay sweetie," Percy said, setting a new one beside me. Again, the smell of cinnamon and the sea. "I'm replacing it for you, that way you'll always feel like I'm close by." He twisted around and kissed my forehead, going back to folding some of my new black t-shirts.

"Why do you always smell like cinnamon?" I blurted. "Oh my gods," I gasped, flushing red. "I'm so sorry." He chuckled lowly and turned to look at me. He stood up and began putting away the laundry (little cabin wife). He still chuckled, although I failed to find what was so funny with the question.

"You finally ask," he replied, picking up the basket of clothes and setting it by the door. "It's this cologne my mom bought me awhile back. It makes me smell like a candy shop at Christmas, but I wear it because it makes her happy. I don't know who decided cinnamon would be a good smell for a boy but…" He shrugged. "I'm not afraid to wear it. I actually happen to like the smell." He smiled at me. "You seem to like it too."

"I do," I admitted. "I love it actually. I don't think you'd smell like…you without it." I felt weird talking to Percy about his cinnamon cologne. The conversation itself wasn't that bad, but it seemed weird to me to be talking about how he smelled. "Where'd she find it?" I asked, then added quickly, "The cologne." He frowned in a thoughtful way.

"I'm not sure," he replied with a shrug, picking up the basket of clothes and moving toward the door. He paused and looked back. "But I'll ask her, then you and I can go on a little shopping trip." Now that was an appealing idea. "I need some new jeans and shirts anyway," he added thoughtfully to himself as he left my cabin. Now he was being a giant tease. But I had my own agenda. I had to hunt down a bottle of that cologne, and I had to find something for myself.

…

"Leo, wanna go on a shopping trip?" I asked, peeking into the Hephaestus cabin. Leo was lounging on his bed with Jason curled up beside him. Leo appeared to be writing in some sort of notebook, and Jason was dozing. At my voice, Leo looked over and Jason lifted his head.

"What Nico?" he asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes. Jason had a nice sleepy voice, though personally I liked Percy's better. Leo seemed to like it better than I did because a huge smile broke out on his face and he swept Jason up into a hug.

"Do you both want to go on a shopping trip?" I asked, deciding to include Percy's best friend in this little expedition. "I have something I want to look for and I could use a little help. Oh, I found out why Percy smells like cinnamon." Leo looked at me curiously while toying with Jason's hair and effectively lulling the blonde boy back to sleep. "It's his cologne. His mom got it for him. That's what I'm after today. I want to surprise him with another bottle. Also, I want to find something for myself. Smelling like a child of the Underworld doesn't always make the best first impression." I smiled thinly and Leo chuckled. "Also, if you keep doing that, you're never going to get him up and functioning." Leo looked down and groaned.

"Wake up baby," he said, leaving a trail of kisses down Jason's cheek, chin, and neck. He moved onto the shoulder when Jason squirmed away from him and giggled, opening his eyes. "Hi sleepyhead," he said, and I had a weird since of déjà vu.

"Where we going?" Jason asked in that sleepy voice, and I'm sure if I hadn't been there along with some of Leo's siblings, they wouldn't leave the cabin at all. Be that as it may, Leo smiled easily at him and helped him stand up.

"Shopping with Nico baby," he replied, then he looked at me, his smile fading. "Are we shadow traveling?" I shrugged.

"That was the plan. Any objections?" Leo opened his mouth to protest, but Jason put his hand gently on the boy's shoulder. Leo shut his mouth. "Hold hands," I ordered, grabbing one of Jason's and one of Leo's. They took the other hands and I concentrated, imagining us downtown. When I opened my eyes, we were in the middle of a busy sidewalk in downtown New York. People stepped around us like we were an annoying roadblock. I felt fine but I waited a couple of minutes while Jason, a first time shadow traveler, attempted to calm his stomach. Leo looked a little less white/tan than normal, but other than that he looked okay. He put a hand on Jason's back as the blonde boy straightened up, still looking a little green.

"That was awful," Jason said quietly. It looked like he was still fighting the contents of his stomach. "How can you stand that? And how are you not tired? Doesn't shadow traveling take a lot of energy." I shifted weight from foot to foot uncomfortably.

"The first time Percy and I… fought… I did a lot of shadow traveling. Short distances don't usually bother me, but I wouldn't be able to fight well if the occasion arises. And when you're a demigod, that's pretty often." I gazed around at where we were. "Anyone know the way to Fifth Avenue?"

…

Our shopping trip went well. I actually found a bottle of Percy's cologne (I won't tell you what it's called because I really can't pronounce it). It did make him smell like a Christmas candy shop, and a full bottle smelled almost like a Cinnabon cinnamon roll shop. It still smelled amazing. I had the lady at the store package it in a little blue bag (Percy's favorite color). She gave me a funny look, but I simply smiled at her and paid for the bottle, and the extra two fifty for the bag. Jason and Leo had fun trying on shirts for each other, each taking turns pointing out how one shirt complimented the other's frame. This is what happens when you take the boyfriends shopping with you.

"You guys have tried on every single shirt in the store that can be worn by a boy," I said wearily, tapping my foot impatiently. Jason had just come out in a tight fitting white long sleeved shirt, and I had to admit it complimented his frame nicely. "Nice choice," I said, and Jason smiled at me.

"You think so?" he asked, examining himself in the floor length mirror. Leo whistled and Jason grinned. "I'm going to get it," he decided, disappearing back inside the dressing room. Leo had a small stack of stuff beside him on the floor, which he picked up and carried to the checkout. Jason followed with his own small stack. I followed them both, shaking my head. "Did you find your own cologne?" Jason asked as he paid the cashier. This cashier was a lot friendlier than the one I had. He smiled at them both and wished them a pleasant day.

"I haven't," I replied. "I got Percy's though. And I see you guys have a little something, something from this trip." Jason grinned and held up his bags.

"Skinny jeans baby!" he exclaimed, dancing around Leo. Leo chuckled. In the last couple of days they seemed to switch personalities, with Leo being more subdued and Jason getting the bubbly excitement.

"Anyway," I said, rolling my eyes at him. "I have one more shop I want to go to before we head back." I led the way down the street, and Jason and Leo followed me curiously. "Here we are," I said, disappearing inside. I made a mad dash for cologne and looked around. Leo wandered up behind me and watched for a while. "I don't exactly know what I'm looking for," I said to him.

"Something that smells good, right?" he asked, picking up a bottle. He took a sniff. "This one smells nasty." He set it back down. "Baby, where are you?" he called, and Jason popped up from behind the counter. "Help us out baby," he said. "Nico needs something that'll get Percy's attention." Jason saluted to Leo and wandered around the mountains of cologne bottles.

"This one smells great!" he exclaimed, holding up a black bottle. I was wary of anything black, but I wandered over to him and took it from him, sniffing. It did smell good. I just couldn't place what it smelled like. "I'm not sure," Jason said as if reading my mind. "It just smells awesome." I nodded.

"Sold," I said, going to pay for it.

…

"Surprise!" I said, holding out the little bag of cologne. Percy opened his eyes and looked up at me. He'd been laying in my bed (I'm pretty sure he'd been dozing). He took the bag from me and looked at it. "I thought you might like it," I said with a smile. Percy peered inside and then did something I didn't expect. He laughed. I frowned at him. "What?" I asked, worried.

"Thank you so much Nico!" he cried, trailing kisses down my neck. "I was running out and was worried I wouldn't be able to wear it anymore. How'd you find it?" He took a deep sniff. "And why do you smell amazing? I could just eat you up." I laughed.

"I went stopping with Jason and Leo," I replied, crawling into bed and snuggling up against him. "That cologne was not easy to find. Neither was Jason after he discovered dark skinny jeans. And Leo after he discovered how good Jason looked in dark skinny jeans." I groaned and buried my head in his shirt. "Remind me never to talk them both shopping at the same time again. If I wasn't there, I don't know what would've happened." Percy chuckled and lifted up my head to look me in the eyes.

"Thanks for the surprise," he said with a smile. "Surprises," he amended. "The bottle of my cologne and your new cologne. I don't know how I'll be able to keep my hands off you." He rested his hands on my waist and began kissing me in earnest. I'd have to remember to thank Jason the next time I saw him. But right now, I was busy with Prince.

…

I did not expect for it to be all Nico's POV. But wasn't that a nice little, sweet chapter. That means something bad is gonna happen to someone.


	14. The Perfect Shopping Trip and Surprise

Let's have a Percy and Nico shopping spree! Percy did say in the last chap he wanted to go shopping with Nico anyway, and just because he has his bottle of special cologne won't stop him. Let's have fun with this, shall we.

…

Percy's POV

…

"Wake up sweetie," I said, letting myself into Nico's cabin. Nico grumbled something and curled up on his side, pulling the blanket up over his head. I chuckled and settled myself beside him, rubbing his back. "Sweetie, Chiron says we can go on a shopping spree today. I want some new things and I'm sure there's some things you'd want to pick up too." That seemed to wake him up, or at least he pulled the blanket off his head.

"Where are we going to go?" he asked, staring up at me. Nico had a lovely sleepy voice, and if I wasn't about ready to boil over with excitement I doubt we would've left the cabin. He slowly climbed out of bed, and I blinked when I realized he had no shirt on. He'd slept in basketball shorts, and they hung kind of low on his hips. He stretched lazily and once again I got a great view of his abs. "Prince?" He glanced down at himself and a knowing smile appeared on his face. "Admiring the view huh?" he teased gently.

"That's for my eyes only," I said, wrapping my arms around him. If this was how the day was turning out then it was going to be a fantastic day. "Now why don't you get dressed and ready for travel time. Don't forget to brush your teeth!" I called after him as he disappeared into his bathroom. "I'm such a mother hen," I said to myself as a stretched out, adjusting me blue tee so it covered my stomach.

"It's okay," Nico said in response to what I'd said to myself, and I wondered, not for the first time, what kind of powers my little Prince of Shadows really had. "Again, I've never had someone fuss over me before. It's nice." He dug around in his dresser and produced dark jeans and black t-shirt with a silver skull on it. I smiled at him as he shamelessly got dressed in front of me. He had nothing to hide. In fact, I think he was doing it purely to tease me.

"About where we're going," I replied, snapping myself out of my little daze. "I don't know. First I thought we could grab a bite to eat. I don't know about you, but I'm starving."

"I could eat," he replied, spritzing on some of that new cologne of his. When he wore it, he smelled amazing, but I couldn't place what it smelled like. I know I'd smelled it before… "And why are you staring at me now?" he asked, a playful smile tugging at his lips despite his attempts to keep a serious mood.

"I'm trying to figure out what your cologne smells like," I replied truthfully, turning pink. "I've smelled it before, I'm just not sure where. Or how." I wrinkled my nose in concentration. "I can't place it."

"Neither can I," he replied, frowning. He picked up the bottle and studied it. "I'm not even sure what it's called. Jason picked it out for me. I was a little leery of the black bottle, but so far it's worked out." He set the bottle back on top of his dresser and turned to me, slinging a backpack over one shoulder. "Are we ready to shadow travel out of here?" Smiling, I grabbed his hands.

"Yeah," I replied before I saw nothing but black.

…

The best part about shadow traveling with Nico (in my opinion) was that I got to squeeze his hands the entire time. I'm sure it was only a few seconds we were actually doing it, but it felt like a life time. We landed by Central Park (which I found odd). Nico straightened and smiled at me while I gagged and dropped to one knee. I would've kissed the smile right off of him if I hadn't been so busy trying to keep my meager breakfast in my stomach.

"It's fun watching people's reaction when they do that," he said. "Where should we start?" I shrugged. I knew where I wanted to go, but I was in no hurry to get there. It was late morning, meaning it was about lunch time. I looked into the park. There's nothing like a picnic in the park.

"Wanna grab a bite?" I asked, motioning to some of the food carts set up." Nico nodded enthusiastically and lead the way inside. "I was thinking hot dogs," I said, and once again he nodded. We came across a hot dog stand, ordered two with all the works, and sat down on a bench to enjoy our meal. Ketchup dripped onto Nico's shirt and he groaned, swiping at it with a napkin.

"Stupid ketchup," he mumbled, taking another bite. I grinned at him and finished mine, sitting back and enjoying the lazy afternoon. It was warm today, and I was glad I decided to wear a t-shirt, because it would've been too hot in anything else. Nico looked content in his black clothing, despite that black soaked up heat like a sponge. People passed by from time to time, and some even smiled at us. Don't say everyone in New York is unfriendly (although between you and me it was mostly the moms that smiled at us). "What a great day," Nico said, stretching up beside me and balling his napkin in his fist.

"Yep," I agreed, looking up. The tall buildings of New York stretched over us like jungle trees, our own suburban jungle that is. I couldn't imagine living anywhere else. New York was my home. I stood up on that happy note, hauling Nico to his feet. "Let's get this shopping day started sweetie. Where do you want to go first?" My little shadow prince tapped his chin, thinking hard.

"I want to go back to the shop where I got the cologne," he replied at last, grinning. "I want to stock up while we're in the city. At the rate I'm going with it, I'll need more." I grinned and wrapped him in a quick hug.

"Sure sweetie, whatever you want," I said as he lead the way to Fifth Ave.

…

"This is great!" Nico exclaimed, holding up the little bag with two bottles of his new cologne in it. I don't know how he got the money to pay for them, but he just reached into his backpack and, viola, money. I guess when your dad is the king of untold riches mortal rules like budgets don't apply. "Can we go try on clothes?" he asked, giving me the puppy dog eyes. Even without them, I would've said yes, but now I laughed and nodded. "Goody!" he said, zipping off. I followed him at a slower pace and soon lost him. I fought the panic rising in my chest. He had to be here somewhere.

"Nico!" I called, my voice cracking. "Nico!" He rounded a corner and stared at me like I'd lost my mind. I didn't care. I was so relieved to see him I ran to him, swept him up, and hugged and scolded him at the same time. "There you are sweetie. Don't you ever give me a heart attack like that again or I'll stop talking to you for a month! I'm glad you're okay," I hugged him tighter, and I could tell he was trying to stifle laughter.

"Geez Prince," he said, finally wiggling out of my grasp. "I was just looking at some new shirts. I wasn't that far." He pointed to a rack a few feet away, and I noticed now he was shorter than it. No wonder I hadn't seen him. "I wanna go to jewelry anyway," he decided. "Let's go!" He grabbed my hand and hauled me over to the jewelry section of the store. "Look at the rings!" he exclaimed, examining them through the glass. I chuckled and walked away a little, but keeping him in my sights. He seemed busy oohing and ahhing over the rings, so I turned to look at necklaces. I found the one I wanted, the one I'd run across when I was out shopping last with my mom.

"Are you admiring the nice necklace?" the salesman asked, smiling kindly at me. I nodded and examined it more. It was kind of feminine, but then again so was Nico. It was sterling silver inlaid with red rubies, and the metal was twisted into an N. It was the perfect gift for my little shadow prince. "Excellent choice," he said, stooping to pick it up.

"If you don't mind," I said quietly. "I would like it gift wrapped. I also would appreciate it if that little man didn't see." I motioned to Nico, who was examining gold bands now. The salesman nodded once and did a good job of hiding it while he rang up the price and wrapped it in a little white box. It cost me three hundred dollars (actually it was a little more than that), which was about all I had. But it was worth it for my Prince of Shadows.

…

"You didn't buy much," Nico commented when we got back to camp. I had a couple of bags with some nice white dress shirts in them, but other than let I left Nico to do the shopping. He bought some more black shirts, varying t-shirts and good shirts, as well as a skull ring. It seemed fitting for him. I'd managed to hide the box with his necklace in it all day, and now I couldn't wait to show it to him.

"That's because I bought a big item early in the day and didn't have a terrible amount of money left," I replied, reaching down into my bag and pulling out the little box. "This is for you Nico." He glanced from the box to me as he took it. "Go on, open it, my precious Prince of Shadows." I watched his face as he carefully lifted the lid. His jaw went slack as he gently lifted the necklace out by its silver chain.

"Percy, it's beautiful," he said, gazing at it fondly. I took it from him, moved around behind him, and gently clasped it around his neck. He fingered the silver and ruby N, looking at me. "How much did this cost you Percy? This is real silver and rubies."

"It was a lot," I admitted, and I saw the pained look he gave me. "I don't care Nico. Money is just a thing. The point was I bought this for you because I love you, and now you'll always remember that and this day. It's been the perfect day indeed." I embraced him and pressed my lips to his ear. "I love you Nico, my precious Prince of Shadows."

"I love you too Percy, my darling Prince of the Sea," he replied, fingering the necklace again. "Thank you for this wonderful gift and the perfect outing." I smiled at him. It was no trouble at all. In fact, I think it was the best day I've ever had.

…

Awww, that was a cute chapter too! Which means something really bad is going to happen! Cause nothing that good lasts forever. What did you think of Percy's surprise for Nico? I think it's sweet to get him something like that (but that's just my opinion). As always, R&R and I'll see you next chap!


	15. Someone Stole Nico's Necklace

When I can't sleep, I type. So this is what you're going to get. It's the start of the downfall, you just won't know which couple is going to take the heat. Maybe it's Percy and Nico, maybe it's Jason and Leo. You'll just have to read and find out. The real deal won't happen quite yet, but this chapter will be bad too. I'm also rereading the Titan's Curse. Nico is adorable as a geek! And adorable when he's young and doesn't hate the hero. He was excitable when Percy, Annabeth, and Thalia first found him and Bianca.

…

Nico's POV

…

I was sore, and that was putting it mildly. Leo kicked my ass in sword fighting today, and he wasn't even the best with the sword. All throughout practice, I kept feeling the N on my necklace hit my chest, and I'd smile, lose my concentration, and Leo would wallop me with the flat of his sword. He would almost hit me with the edge, but he'd turn his wrist at the last moment and slap me with the flat. The last one he did sent my sprawling into the dust of the arena floor.

"How about we take a break," Leo said, helping me to my feet. I groaned in protest and sank against the arena wall, accepting a bottle of water from Leo. Jason lounged somewhere in the stands, reading a book. When he heard the sounds of swords stop, he looked up and wandered down the join us. He drew his own Imperial Gold sword, and he and Leo began sparring. I watched as I sipped at my bottle of water. Jason was a natural with his sword. Leo quickly broke into a sweat, and he frowned in concentration. Once or twice I seriously thought he was trying to separate Jason's head from his shoulders.

"Rest!" Jason called, and Leo promptly collapsed into the dirt, panting heavily. Jason laughed and stooped to peer at him. "You look a little tired there," he said, grinning. Leo glared as he rose to his feet, swaying wearily. "Careful," Jason said, helping Leo to the stands. "You're getting better," he commented, smiling at Leo.

"Thanks baby," Leo said, pecking his cheek. I finished the last of my water and tossed the bottle in the trash.

"Guys, look what Percy got me," I said, pulling the necklace charm out. I'd kept it a secret all day, and now that they were both here, I could show them. "It cost him most of his money from our shopping spree yesterday. He surprised me with it when we got back to camp." Leo gently took the charm in his hand and examined it. All my instincts screamed to take it back, but I bit my tongue and let him examine it closely.

"It's beautiful Nico," Jason said with a lazy smile. "You're one lucky guy. Percy's the greatest." Leo gave him a pout and cuddled up against him, and I chuckled to myself. "Awww, you're the greatest too, babe," Jason said, kissing his forehead. "No need to get jealous." Leo grinned at him and sheathed his sword. "I take it we're done for the day?" Jason said, setting his sword aside. I did the same with mine and tucked my necklace back inside my shirt, once again letting the cool metal rest against my skin.

…

"You good for noting twat!" I groaned as I rolled over in my bunk. Sword fighting wore me out so I was trying to catch some sleep, but Clarisse decided to pick a fight with the people from the Apollo cabin, again. I still had no idea what a twat was, but I'm pretty sure she was calling Will Solace that, since he's the only one she called a twat.

Abandoning the idea of sleep, I stumbled outside while slipping my shirt back on. It was dark blue today, with some band scrawled out on it in white. Leo picked it out for me, so he could tell you better what band it was. I went down to the creek where Jason and Leo were hanging out with Percy, Annabeth, Piper, and these two new kids Hazel and Frank, who I'm pretty sure were a couple and the only straight ones in our group. Percy caught sight of me first and ran over, the water shedding off him like a coat.

"Hey sweetie," he said, wrapping me in a hug and kissing me tenderly. Leo whooped in the background and Jason let out a loud whistle. Frank and Hazel looked mildly embarrassed but everyone else had grins on their face.

"Hey Jackson!" Piper called. "Are you going to share your little prince, or are we going to have to wrestle you both into the creek?" Laughing, Percy ran down and plunged in, hefting Piper up and riding on his own little wave around the creek. She screamed and pummeled him, but I just laughed and sat down on a rock by the shore. "You coming in di Angelo?" she asked when Percy finally let her splash back into the creek. Everyone was in, even Frank and Hazel. Hazel was on Frank's shoulders, and it appeared he had no problem holding her up. He was a big man by definition, and Hazel was on the small side.

"I don't really want to," I said, feeling shy all of a sudden. Going in required taking off my shirt and jeans, and right now I didn't want to. Percy studied me for a moment, then climbed out and sat down beside me, wrapping one arm around me. "I don't want to take off my shirt," I whispered, turning pink.

"Why not?" he asked, kissing my neck. "You have a wonderful body Nico. Show it off." He slowly lifted my shirt off me, and I let him, turning pinker. Once again, Leo whooped. Percy looked down at my chest and stomach. "Oh, your necklace," he said, understanding. "Just put it on your clothes Nico," he said gently, unclasping it. "It's not going anywhere." He set it down on my shirt and watched as I shed my jeans. No one was embarrassed now. We were a close group, and a welcoming one at that, seeing Frank and Hazel laughing and joking with Piper and Jason. I waded in and was met by Percy, who pulled me under and began kissing me in the little air bubble he created.

…

Percy's POV

…

"This has been great," Hazel said as I willed the water off of her. She slipped her clothes back on and wrapped herself around Frank, who kissed her temple. "Thanks for welcoming us into your group. You guys seem close knit."

"We are," I replied, turning and willing the water off Piper and Annabeth. They stood with their fingers twined together, and I smiled. It was good to see them finally sort their feelings out. Nico came up to me calmly, but in his eyes I saw the panic. "What is it sweetie?" I asked him, and he buried his head in my chest and burst into tears.

"My necklace is gone!" he wailed, and that got the attention of everyone there. Frank and Hazel looked a little confused, but Piper, Annabeth, Jason and Leo looked concerned. "I looked at my pile of clothes and it wasn't there!" he continued. "Someone or something stole it!" I looked around at everyone, and they all shrugged. I don't believe anyone in our group would steal Nico's most precious item, but all the same.

"Did anyone see what happened to Nico's necklace?" I asked. Everyone shook their heads, looking as baffled as I felt. Alright, let's spread out and find it," I continued, scooping Nico up and letting him rest his head on my shoulder. "Jason, do you think you could search with Leo down the creek? Piper and Annabeth, upstream. Frank and Hazel…" I paused, realizing they didn't know what it looked like. "It's silver with rubies and the charm is an N, for Nico," I said quickly. You guys check the west woods. I'll take Nico and look in the east woods. The groups moved off, scanning the ground. Jason actually called the winds and began searching through the tree line, trying to ask the tree nymphs if they've seen it.

"Will we find it Prince?" he asked as I slipped his shirt on him.

"I sure hope so sweetie," I replied, worried. "I sure hope so."

…

"Nico, I don't think we're going to find it tonight." It was well after dark, and we'd all met back at the creek. No one had any luck finding it, and we'd scavenged every part of the woods and creek. Nico burst into fresh tears and buried his head in my shirt, fisting it. "Thanks for helping guys. Anyone wanna help look tomorrow? I hate to ask, but…"

"Say no more," Leo said, holding up his hand. "Nico's our little buddy. Of course we'll help search tomorrow. Won't we guys?" The rest of the group nodded, except for Hazel and Jason. Both were curled up on the ground by the creek, out like lights. Frank gently picked up Hazel while Leo shook Jason awake and led him back to camp. Frank followed with Hazel, Piper and Annabeth followed them, while I brought up the rear with Nico. I was still carrying him.

"Will we find it Prince?" Nico asked as I tucked him in. I curled up beside him and pulled him close, kissing the top of his head. I ran my fingers through his hair and attempted to lull him to sleep. He yawned and held the shirt I'd left for him close to his chest, and I heard him sniffle a couple of times.

"We'll find it Nico," I replied. "It's got to around here somewhere. At least none of our friends have it."

…

No one's POV

…

"Are you sure this is a good idea Leo?" Jason questioned the other boy, wringing his hands nervously. He didn't like this one bit (and not just because Leo came and roused him from his sleep to do this). "That's Nico's necklace. Not just that, but it's the gift that Percy gave him. If Percy ever found out you had it, he'll kill us both."

"Relax," Leo said, digging it out of the small hole he'd buried it in earlier in the day. "We'll 'find' it tomorrow, return it, and everything will be golden." He dropped it back into the hole and scraped the dirt over it. Jason watched as the dirt covered the red N. He still had a bad feeling about this.

"What if someone finds us?" he asked, pacing. "What if someone discovered that we had it the entire time, that we hid it to have a little fun? I never expected Nico to burst into tears. I thought you'd fixed that?" Leo shrugged.

"Old habits die hard," he said. "Now let's get back before the cleaning harpies discover we aren't in our cabins and decide they want to have a midnight snack." Leo led a nervous Jason back, and unknown to them, a set of eyes was watching them.

"You are both dead men," Percy promised as he silently followed them back to camp. "First off for making Nico cry and second for lying about not having that necklace."

…

Who expected that? Maybe it's just a friendship that'll get ruined, or maybe it'll tear every couple apart. We'll just have to see.


	16. Jason Confesses

First of all, Happy New Year! Second, what better way to kick off the New Year than with some Percico? Am I right? Also, thank you for the wonderfully funny comment about Percy, Jason and Leo's manhood, and Bessie. It made my night. Jason and Leo centric chap time! Okay, mostly (or all) Jason.

…

Jason's POV

…

"I'm so worried!" I hissed to Leo as we crouched over the little hole that housed Nico's necklace. Leo was normally such a sweetie, and I had no idea why he wanted to stir up trouble with our friends. Or why I'd let him talk me into it. But he said he wanted to see what would happen if one of our friends lost something of theirs. It just happened to be the very expensive, real silver necklace Percy purchased for Nico two days previously. If Percy ever found out that we had it, we'd both be digging bigger holes, because he'd most likely bury us alive.

"Relax baby," Leo replied, carefully scooping it out of its little hiding hole. "We'll just return it to Nico today. Problem solved." He made it sound so simple, but the guilt was going to eat at me all day. After all, we made Nico cry. That was something I didn't want to see again (as I've already seen it twice).

"Leo, we made Nico cry," I said, voicing my thoughts. "I'm sure Percy would've been fine if we fessed up to having it. Now that we've kept it, and hidden from his shadow prince, he won't be so keen on forgiving us. Leo." I grabbed his shirt and pulled him close. He blinked at me. "Percy is going to make us fish food if we don't tell the truth."

"Will you relax already?" he snapped, prying my hands off him. "Percy will never know that we had it the entire time. Or that I purposely took it when they weren't looking and hid it in my jeans pocket. You won't tell a soul, will you?" He pouted at me, and as much as it pained me, I nodded once.

"I won't," I agreed. "I don't like it, but I won't."

…

"Thank you thank you thank you thank you!" Nico cried when Leo presented him with the necklace. He took it from him and ran his fingers over the N, clasping it around his neck. "Look Prince!" he called to Percy, who was lounging around a few feet away. "Leo found my necklace!"

"Did he now?" Percy asked, and my stomach dropped to my feet. "That's good of him. Where'd you find it, Leo?" He made it sound like a threat. He smartly kept his eyes off of us, but I knew if he looked up, and looks could kill, Leo and I would both be dead men. "Well?" Percy asked, rising and wrapping one arm around Nico. "Where'd you find it?"

"In the woods!" I blurted. "Leo and I were going for a morning stroll and it was just lying on the path. A bird or something must have picked it up and dropped it when we weren't paying attention." Nico was busy gazing down at the necklace fondly and I realized how much that necklace meant to him. "Hey Nico," I ventured, and he looked up at me. "How much do you like that necklace?"

"A lot," he replied solemnly, tucking it inside his light blue shirt (blue for Percy's sake no doubt). "It's the nicest thing anyone's ever given me, and it's the nicest thing I own. I'm so glad you guys found it for me. I was really worried I wouldn't see it again." I screamed inside. Nico put too much trust in us. I felt so rotten. "It's even better because Prince gave it to me," he continued, smiling at Percy. "Isn't he thoughtful?" Percy turned to look at Nico, and all the anger melted away as he gazed fondly at his little Prince of Shadows. Oh man, now I felt worse. It was obviously Nico's most prized possession.

"I'm glad you like it sweetie," Percy said, kissing his temple. "I'm also glad that you have it back. I wasn't so much upset about you losing it, although it did upset me because it was a lot of money. What upset me was someone or something was evil enough to steal away your necklace and make you cry and worry." He shot Leo and me a look over Nico's head, and I about fainted. He knew. He knew we'd taken it and hidden it. "Well boys, Nico and I have Pegasus riding lessons soon and we best be off. You have a pleasant day. And Jason," he added over his shoulder as he led Nico away. "Sometimes, you're better off without certain people." I gulped. I knew he meant Leo, but I don't think I was ready to admit that yet.

"Y…Yeah," I stammered, giving him a little wave as he left. As soon as he was out of ear shot I rounded on Leo, my eyes blazing. "Are you nuts? He knows about it!" It took all my will power not to scream. "He knows we took and hid the necklace, and he knows we buried it in the woods. Why'd I let you talk me into this? I thought we were going to hide something silly, like someone's clothes or the picnic basket, not the necklace of the boyfriend of the boy who could beat us up with one hand and not break a sweat!"

"I wonder why he didn't say anything then," Leo retorted. "If he really knew, he should've called out our bluff, but he didn't." He gave me a little smirk. "That means we're home free."

"Idiot!" I roared, calling the winds and throwing him away from me. He went sprawling into the dust and lay motionless for a bit, groaning quietly. "The only reason he didn't call us out on it is because Nico was standing right there. He didn't want to break his heart, which finding out we stole his most prized possession surly will!" I felt so mad I was shaking, and thunder clouds rumbled overhead. Leo sat up and touched his cheek, were a cut had appeared and was dripping with fresh blood. His eyes widened as he pulled his hand away and looked at me, with fear.

"I just wanted to have some fun," he said quietly. "I didn't mean to cause this much trouble. I guess I didn't realize how much that necklace meant to Nico. Are we fish food baby?" Even in my anger state, I noticed he used my nickname, probably to soften me up a little. I wasn't going to fall for it.

"Your idea of fun has just made an enemy of one of my best friends, probably caused you to stop seeing one of your best friends, and now we're fighting." I closed my eyes and willed away the anger, to no avail. I was furious with Leo. I don't think I've ever been mad at Leo, but right now I didn't even want to look at him. Calling the winds, I flew away, not looking back at him.

…

"Percy?" I called softly, knocking on the door of his cabin. I heard some shuffling inside and Percy threw open the door. I noticed that he kept it from banging open, which I think was a little anti-dramatic for how he was feeling, then I caught sight of Nico curled up in Percy's bunk, fast asleep. Why'd I have to catch him at nap time? "How late was he up last night?" I asked, pointing at Nico. Percy turned back to look at him, and I saw the smile tugging at the corners of his lips. No matter how mad he was at anyone else, his Nico would always get a smile out of him.

"Late enough," he replied, stepping out onto the porch and closing the door quietly behind him. "He alternated from bursting into tears and asking me what would happen if we didn't find it. Between the two, he didn't get much sleep. He was up worried sick for most of the night." He glared at me and I felt myself shrinking under his scrutiny. "How was your night?" It was an innocent enough question, but all the same I remained guarded.

"It was good," I replied slowly. "I didn't get much sleep either."

"I wonder why?" he snarled sarcastically. "Why didn't you and Leo just tell me you had that necklace?" Any suspicions I had about him knowing what we did were confirmed, and I didn't know if I wanted to be glad or scared. "I would've forgiven you for pulling a little stunt like that, and you certainly would've apologized to Nico for the trouble you caused him. But right now, I don't think I want to look at you or I'd rip you up with Riptide without looking, and I don't want to do that. Because if I did, no one would ever tell Nico they're terrible sorry for what they did, first for taking the necklace in the first place, second for lying right to his face about having it, and third for hiding it in the woods where he definitely wouldn't find it." I felt suitable chastened by what he said. After all, I did have a big part in what he said. "Where's that boyfriend of yours? I'm going to refrain from making you both dig your own graves so you can apologize to Nico, and I want you to both do it."

"How'd you find out?" I blurted, and instantly I regretted it. He turned slowly to face me, and he had an incredible poker face when he wanted one. His face gave away nothing, and that scared me more than anything. "How'd you know it was buried in the woods?"

"I had suspicious someone from our group did it, regardless of what everyone said," he replied slowly. "So when Nico managed to sleep for a little while, I snuck out of the cabin and waited in the woods for someone to come along. I know it's kind of creepy, but when your boyfriend is the son of the god of the underworld, your whole view on creepy changes." It took me a moment to realize that he was making a joke, and I let out a nervous laugh. "So when you and Leo began moving around, I followed you, and you guys led me right to the scene of the crime." He blinked. "So to speak."

"It was Leo's idea," I admitted. "I honestly don't know why I agreed to it. But anyway, he said he wanted to see what would happen if someone from our group lost something. I thought it was going to be clothes or something silly like that. But he confided in me when we split up that he had Nico's necklace in his pocket." Percy stared at me for a little while, and that made me extremely uncomfortable.

"I'm glad you told me," he decided at last, and I had to keep from fainting on the spot. I honestly don't think I heard him right. Was he bipolar? Here he was two seconds ago, threatening to kill me, and now here he was saying he was glad I finally told him about the stunt. "You heard me right," he added, and I shivered. Percy had some freaky powers. "I'm glad you told me what happened, and why you did it, even if it was the most idiotic reason ever invented."

"Prince?" We both turned as Nico opened the door and blinked from the intense sunlight. He looked unkempt, and right now he was in a loose shirt and black pajama pants. It reminded me just how grown up he's gotten. "What's going on?" He looked from Percy to me and back again. "What happened with my necklace?"

"I'm just saying how glad I am that you have your necklace back sweetie," he replied easily, smiling at him. "Also sweetie, what did I say about silently sneaking places?" He grinned and ran a hand though his hair, causing it to spike. "Why don't you go wait in the cabin while I finish talking to Jason, kay?" Nico skipped back into the cabin, humming softly to himself and slamming the door shut. Percy turned back to me. "By the end of the week, you both better have apologized to him, or I won't be so nice." With that said, he disappeared inside his cabin, leaving me to stumble away.

…

"That's good," Leo commented when I told him about my confrontation with Percy earlier. "Now all we have to do is say an apology to him. That's not so bad." I glanced sideways at him.

"How can you call yourself his friend when you did that to him?" I asked him, and he blinked at me in surprise. "How can you honestly say your friends with him, when all you did was cause him a lot of heartache and a good night's sleep? Dude, he cried all night long from worry. He was worried he'd never see it again. I don't even want to know what would happen if we hadn't returned it to him." I shuddered to think of what he and Percy could do together. They both had some seriously freaky powers, you put them together and they were a force to be reckoned with. "I don't know if I can be boyfriends with someone who's a thief and a sneak," I continued, feeling the lump forming in my throat.

"Baby?" Leo whispered, and I held up my hand.

"Jason," I said. "Just Jason. Sorry Leo, but we're thought." I didn't want to watch his reaction, so once again, I called the winds and flew off.

…

Well, here's to the longest chapter yet! So it was Leo and Jason that got most affected by this. Interesting. See you next chap!


	17. The Ring (And I Think I Love You)

Hiya everyone! Glad you are all liking it so far. I have no idea how long this story is going to be, so you know, just hang in there. Back to Percy's POV

…

Percy's POV

…

"Sorry to hear that Jay," I said when Jason told me about his and Leo's break up. I didn't think he'd actually do it, although it seemed that Leo wasn't as sweet and lovable as everyone thought. "You're better off without him anyway. Do you want me to get Piper to launch ham sandwiches at a hundred miles an hour at him?" He cracked a small smile and Nico gave him a hug.

"Again, I'm really sorry about the necklace Nico," he said, wiping his eyes. I didn't even notice he'd begun to cry, but I did notice the tear tracks on his cheeks. "It was stupid of me to go along with it."

"It's okay Jay Jay," he said, giving Jason a new nickname. "You didn't know about it till the last minute anyway." He crawled onto Jason's lap and smiled. "Now smile. Big heroes like you don't cry." He gently wiped away Jason's tears, and Jason squeezed him close. I moved forward to take Nico back, but my little shadow prince shook his head and squeezed Jason back. Nico thinking of other people's feelings? He really had changed.

"Thanks for the hug Nico," Jason said, letting him go. Nico scampered over to me and climbed onto my back, resting his head on my shoulder. I felt him pull out his necklace again. Ever since he got it back, he'd take it out at random intervals and look at it, touch it, and basically just enjoy having it back. I saw Jason crack a smile out of the corner of my eye. It seems Nico could make anyone smile.

"Prince," Nico asked, playing with my hair. "Can Jason come with us on our shopping trip this afternoon? Some time away from camp, and Leo, would do him so good. Nothing gets you over a breakup faster than friends anyway." I smiled over my shoulder at him, captured his hand, and kissed his fingertips.

"That's a wonderful idea sweetie," I said, and Nico giggled and blushed down to his collar. "What do you say, Jay? Wanna come hang out with your pals in the city? We can go to Central Park and go shopping on Fifth Ave and just wander the city. It'll be fun." Jason wrinkled his nose like he was thinking about it, and Nico pouted at him.

"Please Jay Jay?" he asked. "It'll keep your mind off Leo for a few hours. Besides, maybe you'll find something you really like." Jason shrugged and stood up, smiling at him. He came over and Nico jumped into his arms. While I felt a surge of protectiveness, I also felt happy Nico was helping Jason try and get over Leo by turning on the cute. Who could resist cute Nico?

"Alright, alright," he said, laughing and ruffling Nico's hair. "I'll go with you guys. It'll be fun, after all." Nico cheered and smiled at him, and he smiled back at my shadow prince. I smiled at them both. Now that Jason apologized for the little stunt he had a part it, I could turn the other cheek with him. After all, he's suffering enough anyway.

…

"Thank you!" Nico told the pretzel vendor, handing him some bills. "Keep the change." He wandered back over to where Jason and I were sitting. "Eat up Jay Jay," he said, perching on my lap and tearing bits of pretzel off and dunking them in cheese sauce. Jason scowled at his pretzel and pushed it aside. Nico stopped eating and stared at him, his eyes watering. "Don't you like it?" he asked. Jason sighed and began eating it slowly. Nico went back to happily dunking pretzel bits in cheese. I chuckled softly and took a sip of my coke.

"Where to first Jason?" I asked him. He frowned. I don't think he was used to choosing where he wanted to go.

"Prada," he replied at last. "They've got awesome clothes. I want some new things that Leo hasn't picked out for me in advance. Percy, you could probably find something there." He looked at Nico. "You too Nico." Just then, Nico looked over and squealed.

"Percy, carriage rides!" he cried, pointing. Both Jason and I looked over and I noticed the horse-drawn carriages. Nico had a fascination with them, which is weird because they didn't really like Nico.

_Hey guys_, I thought. One of the horses let out a loud whinny and shook his mane. Nico laughed and clapped. _Think you'd be willing to pull us around? It'd be me, Nico, and Jason_.

_One smells like death_, the horse replied. _But yes, we shall_. I stood up and walked over to the horses, and Jason and Nico followed me. I handed the man some money, and he tipped his hat to us, climbed up, and looked at us expectantly. I helped Nico up, but Jason hesitated.

"It's okay Jason," I whispered, offering him my hand. He took it and I pulled him up. He sat across from Nico and I, and looked vaguely uncomfortable. I knew he was hurting from his breakup with Leo, and doing something like this must be hard. "Jay," I said, resting my hand on his knee. He looked at me, and I saw traces of tears in his eyes. "Jay, it's going to be okay. Leo's just an idiot. He's obviously not the guy you thought he was. Try and enjoy this day, okay? After we're done with Nico's carriage ride we'll hit up Prada and anywhere else you want to go."

"Tiffany's," he replied quickly. "I want a ring. Not exactly that," he added, pointing at Nico's skull ring, which he covered with his other hand. "Something nice. For myself." He grinned. "I'm single and ready to mingle after all. I gotta look the part." I smiled and slapped him on the back.

"That's the spirit Jay," I said. "That's the spirit."

…

"Sharp looking suit Jason," I said as he emerged from the dressing room. He twirled around in his two piece grey suit, examining himself in the mirror. "Guys will be drooling all over you if you show up in that."

"You think?" he asked, looking unsure. Nico let out a low whistle, and I shot him a look, squeezing his hand. "Thanks Nico," Jason said with a smile, disappearing back inside. "It's definitely something to think about. Can we head to Tiffany's now?" Nico grinned up at me and shook his head. This might've started out as an outing meant for just Nico and I, but it quickly turned into a cheer Jason up day. It seemed to be working. He smiled more often, and he'd begun to joke with us again. In other words, he acted more like himself.

"Sure Jay Jay," Nico replied, looking at me for objections. I shrugged. I didn't care one way or another. "We can. I have something I want to look at anyway." He slung the straps of his backpack over his shoulders and stood up. Jason came out of the dressing room and set the stuff he'd had on the small desk, smiling at the man typing away at the computer. He smiled back and whisked away the clothes.

"What do you want to look for?" Jason asked, slipping his jacket back on. I noticed it was an old army jacket that he seemed to wear everywhere, no matter the weather. Then I realized who's it was. I didn't say anything, for his sake, but he'd most likely have to give Leo his jacket back at some point.

"Nothing in particular," he replied, looking at me. "Just, something I ordered special a few days back. When your dad is my dad, you get things." He smiled at both of us and skipped ahead. Jason rolled his eyes to the heavens and chuckled. "Come one guys! Tiffany's isn't too far." When we both emerged outside, Nico pulled us into the shadows of a building and closed his eyes. We reappeared in front of Tiffany's. Jason stumbled forward and I caught his arm while he regained his composure. He straightened and gave me a weak smile, still looking a little paler than normal, but otherwise okay.

"I'm glad we're here," he said as we entered the building. He immediately went to rings while Nico talked intently with the man behind the counter. I kept a close eye on him as I joined Jason. "Look Perce," he said, pointing at the gold bands. "That's what I want. They're simple yet elegant." He kept examining them while Nico joined us, pressing a small, black box into my hand.

"What's this sweetie?" I asked, looking down at it. He looked at me anxiously, and I noticed how nervous he looked. "Sweetie, you shouldn't have," I continued, giving him a hug and kiss. I gently opened the box, and gasped. I wasn't a ring person by any means, but this was no ordinary ring. It was real gold, that much I could tell, and it had one dark blue diamond in the shape of a heart on the top, and around the band was a series of smaller dark blue diamonds. "Sweetie, it's beautiful," I said, taking it out of its box.

"Persephone helped me pick it out for you," he admitted, and he smiled nervously. "Truth be told, I wasn't sure if you would like it." I embraced him, slipping the ring on. A perfect fit. Thank you Persephone.

"It's perfect Nico," I replied, trailing kisses down his neck. "Thank you so much." He smiled at me and took my hand to examine it. "It's beautiful Nico. I didn't know they made dark blue diamonds."

"They don't. It's a custom order," he replied. "Persephone herself delivered them to this store. My darling Prince of the Sea deserves only the best." He stood on his tiptoes and began to kiss me with earnest. I don't think Nico's ever started a kiss before, but holy Zeus did it feel right.

"People are looking," Jason said, surprising us both. We pulled away quickly and Nico turned red. Jason began to laugh and held up his hand to show us his new ring.

…

"Thanks guys," Jason said, depositing his bags in his cabin. He was decked out in new threads, with a black wife beater, that accursed army jacket, dark blue jeans, and white sneakers. He looked refreshed and ready for a new ending to his book. "This has been a great day." He looked down at mine and Nico's twined fingers. "Hey, nice ring," he said, motioning to my new piece of jewelry.

"Nico custom ordered it," I replied, kissing his temple. "Didn't you sweetie?" Nico giggled and skipped off, humming to himself. I smiled and shook my head, turning back to Jason. "Did you have a good day, Jay?" I asked.

"Yeah," he said, grinning. "It was great. Nico's so lucky he has you. You're a really great guy." Jason's praise caught me off guard. I looked at my hands and twisted my ring.

"Thanks," I mumbled. Suddenly, Jason lurched forward and pecked my cheek. We stared at each other in shock, and he quickly backpedaled. "Jason… may I ask what that was?"

"I don't know," he replied, looking stumped. "Oh, I know. I like you Percy. A lot. In fact… I think I love you."

…

Ending there! Kill me if you want! I know in the earlier chapters they didn't work out but Jason needs someone to lean on. Apparently Percy is that person. Just don't tell Nico!


	18. The Secret Kept From Nico

Okay, so school has started up again, so I may not post as often as I did. I will try to do it as often as possible, I promise! Now, let's see what happens to Jason, Percy, Nico, and Leo, shall we?

…

Percy's POV

…

"What?" I asked lamely, still reeling. I mean, I heard him, but I don't think I believed him. "You love me Jason?" I asked. He bit his lower lip and nodded. I could tell he was just as confused as I was. Just then, Nico came skipping back. He looked happy, so he must not have seen. "What's up sweetie?" I asked, turning to him. He giggled.

"Nothing," he said. "I'm just really glad you like my ring." He beamed at Jason and twined our fingers together. "I couldn't ask for a better boyfriend." Jason cast his eyes downward, an expression I'd come to know well on him. Guilt. But if Nico noticed, he didn't say anything. He turned back to me and pressed his lips to mine quickly before jogging off. "Catch you later, okay Prince? I want to sleep in your cabin with you tonight. Jason can too if he wants!" With that I lost sight of him, and my stomach sank to my knees. As much as I wanted to help Jason, I don't think having him in the same room as me was a good idea. Especially with Nico all cuddled up to me all night.

"Percy," he began, and I rounded on him. He shrank back a bit. "I'm really sorry about that, but… I was dying to do it all day, ever since you touched my knee in Central Park. I felt some sort of spark… I guess I don't know if you felt it too, but…" I held one finger to his lips to shut him up, and he did.

"Jason, you don't really love me," I decided, suddenly understanding where this was coming from. "I've just been nice to you since Leo and you broke up. You just want to latch on to the person who's showed you kindness. Since Nico isn't your type it's me." Jason nodded slowly, and a hesitant smile. "All better now?" He nodded and I gave him a hug. Now that he sorted his feelings out, he deserved that much.

…

Leo's POV

…

I'd heard Jason, Percy, and Nico return from their shopping trip. I didn't really care about Percy, but Nico and Jason I wanted to see. I was going to apologize to Nico for taking his necklace then lying to him about it, and I was going to beg to Jason for forgiveness. I would drop to my knees and literally beg if that's what it took. I arrived as Jason dropped his stuff off in his cabin and Nico skipped off. I hid behind the Hephaestus cabin to watch, then I witnessed Jason kiss Percy on the cheek. I felt a wave of anger so strong my entire arms burst into flames and I about burned down my cabin.

"You little fucker," I hissed. "We just break up and you already move on? And with Nico's boyfriend? Shame on you, Jay, shame on you. What would Nico say if he just happened to find out about this little exchange? Nico is a scary little son of Hades when he wants to be. Speaking of the son of the devil…" I watched as Nico skipped up to Percy and twined their fingers together. He obviously hadn't seen the kiss otherwise he wouldn't look so cheery. He ran off to go do…something…and I stalked after him. He had to know.

"Leo?" I froze as he turned around and squinted. "Leo, is that you? Come on out buddy. Do you know you really hurt Jason by what you did?" What I did? What Jason did was going to hurt him way worse than anything I did to him.

"I hurt him?" I asked as I approached Nico. "I hurt him? You should see what he and Percy are doing when your back is turned. They…" I stopped when I saw the tears in his eyes. Awww man, why'd he have to turn on the water works?

"What are they doing?" he asked, his voice soft. Sighing, I abandoned my idea of ratting on Jason and Percy. Nico didn't deserve anymore heartache. And while the idea of getting back at Jason for dumping me over a stupid reason was appealing, it wasn't appealing enough to hurt Nico again. I picked him up and hugged him close.

"Nothing bad Nico. They're just chilling. I think Percy's helping Jay get over the break up." Nico's mood improved greatly and he smiled, drying his eyes. "Yeah, your Percy's a good man helping my Jason feel better. You've got nothing to worry about." I set him back down. "Now why don't you go and find Annabeth and Piper?"

"Yay Annie!" he cried, running off. I sighed. I'd just confront Jason about it later. No matter what happened, nothing else was ever worth seeing Nico cry, and nothing was worth breaking his heart about.

…

"Hey, Jason," I called softly, and he whirled around. His eyes flew open and he slowly approached me. "Hiya," I said, smiling. I saw the smile tugging on his lips, despite the fact he was supposed to hate me right now. "How was your shopping day?"

"It was good," he replied. "Look." He held up his hand, and at first I didn't see what I was supposed to be looking at. "The ring," he murmured, and when I looked at his fingers, sure enough, there was a simple gold band just like he always talked about owning. "It cost much less, then you might think. You should see the amazing ring Nico got Percy." At the mention of the son of the sea god, I scowled and Jason stopped his story, staring at me. "What?" he asked, and I heard the defensiveness in his voice.

"I saw what you did with Percy," I snarled, and if he looked surprised before that was nothing to the way he looked now. His eyes widen so much I began to wonder if they were going to pop right out of his skull. He put his hands up to his mouth and made strange, strangled sounds, like he couldn't decide exactly what he wanted to say. "I must say, I'm shocked. Moving on so soon?"

"Did you tell Nico?" he asked, ignoring my question. "Please tell me you didn't tell Nico." Mutely, I shook my head, and he physically relaxed. "Good," he said. "It would break his heart."

"How do you think I feel?" I exploded, and my hands burst into flames. Jason reeled back and stared at me for the longest time. "Don't you care about how I feel? I was coming to beg your forgiveness and apologize to Nico, but now I don't know what I should do. Do you like Percy? Hades, you might love the boy even!" My hands went out faster than the flamed up, which was good because the tears were making it hard to see Jason. I wiped them away just as Jason pressed his lips to mine. I closed my eyes and savored his kiss, hooking my arms around his waist.

"Silly Valdez," Jason whispered, and for the first since this conversation started, he laughed. "Apology accepted. Also, you'd better apologize to Nico. You only have a couple of days before Percy decides to do something bad to you, and if we're going out again, I'd rather my boyfriend be alive and in one piece." I gulped. Right, Percy still wanted to kill me.

…

Percy's POV

…

"So I'm really sorry Nico," Leo said, looking at my shadow prince anxiously. I looked down to study Nico's face, but it was decidedly blank. I couldn't tell what he was thinking. He took some of the carrots off of my plate and bit into one, chewing thoughtfully. I wanted to laugh out loud. Nico was purposely stalling so Leo felt uncomfortable! It was sheer brilliance on his part. But all the same, I gently wrapped one arm around his waist and pressed my lips to his ear.

"I think he's suffered enough for one day already sweetie," I whispered, pulling away and kissing the top of his head. Nico nodded and turned to give me a quick peck on the cheek.

"I forgive you," he said, turning to Leo. "Now Prince won't have to chop you into a million pieces and scatter you and Tartarus. I was deathly afraid we wouldn't be seeing Leo again." He seemed to think about what he said and chuckled. "No pun intended. I'm glad we're all friends again!" He threw his arms around me, the moved to hug both Leo and Jason. I noticed Jason was giving me a look over Nico's head, but I shook my head. No way in Hades was I going to spoil Nico's good mood with something as silly as a kiss on the cheek by Jason. It wasn't even his problem to worry about anyway.

…

"Prince, can I sleep with you?" Nico asked. "It's crowded down here." Nico, Jason, Leo, Piper, Annabeth, Frank, and Hazel were all in my cabin for the biggest slumber party in the history of Camp Half-Blood. Everyone brought there sleeping bags and was spread out on the floor, Nico included. He said he wanted to sleep with everyone, but I guess he didn't realize how much real room was left once you spread out seven sleeping bags on a cabin floor.

"Sure sweetie," I replied, and he crawled up next to me, snuggled up against me. I threw the blanket over him and stared out at the sea of our friends. Nico had really managed to come out of his shell with this group, like I knew he would eventually. "We've got a, generally, good group, don't we Nico?" He nodded in agreement and turned to look out at all the peaceful, sleeping faces. Jason and Leo were curled up side by side, as were Piper and Annabeth. Frank was holding Hazel's hand between their sleeping bags, and I saw he'd fallen asleep with a smile on his face. She did the big guy good, I'd give her that.

"They look so cute when they aren't fighting," Nico commented, motioning to Jason and Leo. Leo was pressed up against Jason, and the blonde boy must have tossed an arm over him while he slept. They really were cute together.

"I'm glad they're working things out," I admitted, unconsciously touching the cheek Jason kissed. Nico shot me a weird look before turning back to study our friends. "They deserve someone special in their lives," I continued, ignoring Nico's look. "It may as well be each other." Nico once again nodded in agreement. I twined our legs together and began running my fingers up and down his arm. He sighed contentedly.

"I'm going to go to sleep Prince," he whispered. "Goodnight." I let him be for a few minutes while I continued to run my fingers along his arm. Then I slowly propped myself on my elbow and kissed his cheek, laying back down and wrapped my arms around him, pulling him close. I was then lulled to sleep by the rhythmic breathing of seven people, the gently gurgle of the salt water fountain, and mine and Nico's combined heat.

…

Leo has a heart after all! R&R, see you next chap!


	19. The Gods Visit

Hi everybody. Okay, so I want to do a new Percico, but I'm stuck on ideas. Not that I want to stop this one! Gods no. I will continue this one. I just need another creative output or I feel like I might explode. So if you have any ideas you want to see put down to paper, send them in a review or PM me. I'm open to all and any ideas. I'm also open to incorporating things (as we're seeing in this story). I'm also typing this at the bowing alley, so yeah.

…

Percy's POV

…

"What should we do?" Leo asked me. All of the usual group was handing out at the docs today. I don't know why, but none of us felt like going to the creek, and some of us had activities in the not too distant future. I had Pegasus riding, Nico and Leo had sword training, Jason had climbing wall and so on and so forth. I'm also pretty sure Annabeth had at least two tutoring sessions today with Travis and Conner Stoll respectively. Hermes guys may be good at pranks, but they lack in the brains department outside of that.

"Don't know, don't care," Hazel replied, stretching out and resting her head on Frank's lap. They'd quickly placed themselves in our little group, and we seemed to accept them. "What's that?" She pointed to the woods on the opposite side of the lake. I sat up straighter and squinted.

"Holy Zeus," I whispered. "Jason, it's your dad." Jason sprang away from Leo as if the boy had lit himself on fire. "And my dad…" A couple more figures made their way out of the tree line, and one appeared to be in a wheelchair. "Hades and Hephaestus," I hissed. Leo and Nico suddenly took an interest in this too. Frank, Hazel, Piper, and Annabeth ran up the path back to the cabins, mostly likely to hide or spy on us or both. Nico gripped my shirt and Leo pressed against Jason. "It's cool guys. It's just our dads, right?"

"Hello son." I nearly shot through the tree line as Poseidon said my name. The gods were now in front of us. Nico approached his dad, but I pulled him back. All four of us dropped to our knees and bowed to each god, one after the other. "Rise, son," Poseidon said gently, and I rose to my feet, looking at him. The other gods seemed pleased, so I gently touched Jason, Leo, and Nico's shoulders and they rose too.

"Hi dad," we all said in unison, then look at each other. I thought I saw Poseidon crack a smile. But Hades remained as stoic as ever. Zeus and Hephaestus, well, I just couldn't tell what they were thinking. They took turns looking at their sons, and at each other. Jason shifted from what foot to other awkwardly and began to hover. I pulled on his hand until he realized what he was doing and came back down, but he still looked nervous. A pile of bones appeared at Nico's feet and Leo's hands burst into flames and then just as quickly went out. The water in the lake began to ripple, and I forced myself to remain calm, because I don't think four of the gods would be happy if I doused them with lake water.

"Well son, it's good to see you," Poseidon said, breaking the ice. He took my hand and shook it, and I did the whole limp-wrist-stare-at-your-hand routine. "A bit tongue tied in our presence?" he joked, and the other three gods snickered. Leo pressed closer to Jason, and Zeus and Hephaestus turned to look at them. Jason stumbled forward and bowed at his dad's feet, then rose and looked up.

"I know why you're here," he began slowly. "I've bet you all heard about what's been going on between the four of us." He waved his hand at the rest of us, and Leo came to stand beside me. "Look, we can explain. Leo, babe, please come here." I noticed Zeus' eyebrows rose, but he said nothing. Leo sheepishly made his was forward and Jason wrapped one arm around his shoulders. "Dad, this is Leo. Son of Hephaestus," he motioned to the god. "And currently my boyfriend. Yes, I'm gay. We all are. Percy and Nico." We both stepped forward, and I took Nico's hand in mine, squeezing it gently. "They're a couple as well."

"Well son," Zeus began, and Hephaestus turned to look at him. Zeus shot the other god a look before turning back to Jason and Leo. "I'm…surprised to say the least." Jason yelped as Leo's hand caught fire and began burning his shirt. He batted at his shirt and Leo looked at him horrified. Hephaestus began to laugh.

"Well son, seems like you got your boyfriend into a hot situation right there." Hades and Poseidon rolled their eyes, making me wonder how often he told a lame joke like that. "Are you happy Leo?" Leo looked mildly surprised at his dad's calm behavior. Truth be told, I was scared to think what would happen when the gods found out. Not so much Aphrodite, because she always believed in true love, but the other gods, and my dad in particular. I guess the others were just as worried, because everyone acted like we were sitting on a death bed. And with Hades around, we very well could be.

"Yeah," he replied softly. He then cleared his throat and looked his dad right in the eye. "I am happy dad. Jason's the best boyfriend I could ask for. I don't think I've ever been happier."

"And you Nico?" Hades asked, and somewhere I knew, deep down in him, he actually cared for his son's happiness. Nico winced at his dad's voice and squeezed my hand tighter. "I thought you hated this son of the sea god." He glanced sideways at Poseidon. "No offense meant." Nico sucked in a breath.

"Feelings change dad," he began, and he seemed to ponder what to say next. "As a god who's seen some of the vilest of feelings, and then some of the most gentle, you must know that." Hades shrugged, and that could mean he cared and wanted to hear more or Nico was one lecture away from being a flower in Persephone's garden (although I don't think she'd like that much. She seemed fond of Nico). "I did, for a while. Then I came back to camp. He held no grudge and took me under his wing. He put up with me when I was acting childish, and he became my best friend. Then he was my boyfriend." He dug the necklace out of his shirt and showed it to his dad. "Percy gave me this, and I gave him this ring." He took my hand and held it up so the gods could see it. "Somewhere along the way, I stopped hating him and started loving him." He turned and gave me a shy smile. "And he loved me too."

"Well," Hades said, and everyone turned to look at him. "What are you looking at me for? Persephone has already informed me of this, and since she approves, I approve. Maybe Percy will do my boy some good." He turned to me, and his eyes darkened. "And if you so much as hurt his feelings I will see to it personally you get the worst punishment we have to offer down in the Underworld." I paled and nodded.

"I approve too," Poseidon said. "These two are clearly happy together. I see nothing wrong with it." We all turned to look at Zeus and Hephaestus, who were busy talking to each other. At the sudden silence, they both turned to look at us.

"We approve as well," Zeus rumbled, speaking for both gods. "These boys are incredibly happy in each other's presence. What kind of parents would we be if we just denied the one thing that made them happy?" Jason launched himself into the air, did a somersault, and then landed back beside Leo. Leo shot fireballs into the sky like mini fireworks. Nico and I, well, we didn't demonstrate our powers. We just crashed our lips together as the gods disappeared back in the woods.

…

"They actually approved?" Annabeth asked us as they made their way back down the path. After the confrontation with our godly parents, Jason, Leo, Nico, and myself and collapsed onto the docks and basically enjoyed each other's company. I think we were all relieved to have our fathers' approval. It seemed like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders now that my dad knew I was gay and dating Nico, like somehow his approval just made it that much easier to love my Prince of Shadows.

"Yep," Jason replied. He and Leo had been insuperable since the gods disappeared. They'd been tangled in each other's arms on the docks for the better part of the last hour, and no one called them out on it. They had the right to express their affection after all. Annabeth and Piper sat side by side in the sand while Frank led Hazel out to sit passed Jason and Leo. I sat up and pulled Nico onto my lap.

"Was it scary?" Hazel asked. Frank nodded like he agreed with her. I bit my lower lip. Personally, I was terrified by the experience, but I couldn't tell how the others felt.

"Oh definitely," Leo replied. "I'm pretty sure I speak for Jason, Percy, and Nico as well. But it was a daunting task telling our dads about our choice of partners. They were surprisingly open about it, but still." Jason nodded and began toying with Leo's hair, which the Latino seemed to like. "All our powers began acting up too. I nearly lit my baby on fire like a torch. Likely he's got good pain sensory and put himself out." He smiled up at Jason as the blonde pummeled him lightly with his fists.

"It wasn't so bad once I showed my dad my necklace and Percy's ring," Nico piped up. Piper, Annabeth, Hazel and Frank all turned to look at him. "All I did was mention what Percy got me and what I got Percy. Apparently, Persephone has already talked to my dad about it, so he knew beforehand what was going on. He was the first to approve." They seemed surprised to hear that. But I had some questions for him, so I quietly led him down the beach.

"What you said to Ha…you dad…is it true?" He blinked at me. "About the hating me and the grudge thing and all of it." I saw something that resembled remembrance as he took my hand.

"Yes," he said quietly in Nico fashion. "I did hate you, way back when. And when I came back, I was glad you were willing to put the past in the past. And then you became my best friend and companion, putting up with all my bullshit kiddie stuff, and somewhere along the way, I fell in love." I squeezed my hand as he continued. "I fell in love with the person who could look passed my outer shell, who didn't give up on me." I felt tears making tracks on my cheeks as I embraced him.

"Of course I wouldn't give up on you Nico," I said softly. "You're my precious Prince of Shadows. Why would I give up on you? You're everything to me and more. I've loved you forever Nico. No matter what, I'll never give up on you."

…

I feel like ending it there on a high note. Percico moments are so sweet. How'd you like the gods entrance. It'd be more dramatic if they said to never see their partner again, but our heroes have suffered enough so far. The next few chapters will be lollipops and rainbows to give them a break.


End file.
